Everton return to the Hill Dickinson stadium to face red-hot Crystal Palace just six days after Monday’s underwhelming 1-1 draw with West Ham United. Everton once again failed to impress in a September that was uninspiring to say the least, looking especially fragile down their right-side. David Moyes will be looking for quick solutions ahead of an upcoming October which includes fixtures against Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspur – third-placed Crystal Palace is hardly an ideal starting point.
Everton failed to win a match in the whole of September, with their last victory still being that 3-2 win at Molineux at the end of August. Just two points from the three following games, with a Carabao Cup exit sandwiched in the middle, have seen the Toffees slip to ninth in the table, in the middle of the tightly congested pack between eighth and seventeenth in the Premier League table, which sees only three points separate ten teams.
Monday’s draw highlighted exactly where Everton had been neglected in the summer transfer window, with West Ham left-winger Crysencio Summerville giving Jake O’Brien possibly his toughest night in an Everton shirt yet, with supporting full-back Malick Diouf adding to his struggles with constant overlaps and pin-point crosses – one which resulted in Jarrod Bowen’s equaliser.
This is not a criticism of O’Brien. At the end of the day, he is a centre-back by nature who has been forced to play out of position for the best part of a year through Everton’s inability to address a right-back position which has needed to be addressed since Seamus Coleman’s leg break in 2017; who is, quite laughably, still the best natural right-back at the whole club. It seemed as if the board thought, ‘It will do’ for another season, a mistake which has held this team back massively at the start of the season.
Conversely, Sunday’s opponents are undergoing possibly the greatest period in their entire history. Fresh off the back of FA Cup and Community Shield victories, Palace have begun this season unbeaten, recording a last-minute win against Liverpool last Saturday and their first-ever away win in Europe at the expense of Dynamo Kyiv – this is certainly going to be the biggest test that Everton have faced at their new stadium this season.
Everton and Crystal Palace – History
Everton are unbeaten against Palace since March 2022, which saw a 4-0 win for the Eagles. Since then, Everton have won six out of their nine meetings. Everton are also unbeaten in their last eleven matches at home against Palace.
Everton have recorded two 3-2 victories against Palace since then – the first being that memorable night at Goodison which secured safety in the 2021/2022 season, and the other being Everton’s final match before their 10-point deduction in the 2023/2024 season.
Crystal Palace were the only team who Everton did the double over last season, with two 2-1 victories.
Team News
Jarrad Branthwaite and Merlin Rohl remain out for this game. They are, however, said to be getting nearer to a return. I am getting a bit sick of typing this.
There are no new injury concerns for Everton.
Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall is suspended for this match after inexplicably picking up five yellow cards in six games.
Crystal Palace have trio Cheick Doucoure, Chadi Riad and Caleb Kporha all ruled out through injury.
What the manager says
On Palace – ‘The manager’s done a great job and they’ve got some really talented players. They deserve a lot of credit. Building teams is really important and I like the people who try to build teams. They’ve not done it with huge resources at Crystal Palace.’
On Michael Keane – ‘I think he’s played really well. He’s an experienced centre half. We maybe saw him as cover for the others, but when he’s stepped in, he’s shown he’s warranted his place.’
On PGMOL (regarding Dewbury-Hall’s suspension) – ‘We have spoken to them and I think they’re accepting that both decisions were wrong.’
Everton Key Player
Michael Keane – Not a name I thought I would have been using in this segment a few weeks ago, but Keane has an argument to be named as Everton’s player of the season so far. He has completely outperformed his compatriot and fellow centre-back James Tarkowski as of now, giving David Moyes selection headaches for when Jarrad Branthwaite eventually returns to full fitness. Many fans argue that Moyes should stick with the familiarity of a Branthwaite-Tarkowski partnership, whilst some believe that Keane has done more than enough to cement his place in the defence.
Keane also offers immense goal threat as well as his defensive solidity this season. He has played every single minute of the league season so far, amassing 0.1xG per 90 minutes, one of the highest rates out of all defenders in the league. He has also recorded five shots so far this season, just four less than Beto. In contrast to previous years, where James Tarkowski seemed to be the target from crosses and set pieces, Keane seems to have taken the responsibility and now looks like one of Everton’s most likely goalscorers.
Crystal Palace are a team who clearly prioritise set pieces, both offensively and defensively – Saturday’s winner came from a long throw, in fact. With three tall centre backs in Marc Guehi, Chris Richards and Maxence Lacroix, Keane will be needed, as well as Tarkowski, to use his height in an otherwise small Everton team.
One to watch for Crystal Palace
Daniel Munoz – The marauding wing back is somewhat of a dying art, with next to no Premier League teams using the role like how Palace do with Munoz, making him one of the most unique players in the whole league. Munoz is fresh off scoring his first goal of the season on Thursday night, adding to his singular assist which he recorded in August. In his 73 appearances for Palace, Munoz has recorded 19 goal involvements, with seven of them being goals.
Everton have shown that they can be overloaded in wide areas, especially against West Ham on Monday. Whilst Tyrick Mitchell acts more defensive on the left-hand side, possibly giving Jake O’Brien an easier afternoon, Munoz is given license to bomb on and act as a winger in attack under Oliver Glasner’s impressive system. It will be a tough test for Vitaliy Mykolenko, who will need Jack Grealish to prove his defensive qualities and help him out.
Final Thoughts
This is hardly a ‘must-win’ game, as some fans are suggesting. Whilst the middle of table is congested and a defeat could see Everton drop down the table before two tough fixtures, we are only six matches into the season as of now. Whilst a loss could see you drop five or six places one week, a victory could see you rise five or six the next. Results have not been ideal in the last four weeks or so, but things need to be put into perspective – this is a team that is a work in progress and will grow each week. It speaks volumes when fans are unsatisfied with ninth place, after the troubles of recent years.
Crystal Palace are an incredible team, yet, despite them being in the good books after beating Liverpool last week, we cannot afford to show them too much respect. We are somewhat of a bogey team for them, and it is hardly as if they’ve breezed past every opponent this season – they have only won three of their six league matches, with two of those wins being by one goal. In a way, they have proven that they can grind out results even when they are not at their best, but that cannot go on forever; as shown by Liverpool. If Everton are at their best and Palace seem tired after their midweek adventures in Poland, there is no reason the Blues cannot come away with three points.
Prediction
1-1 – Everton need to find a way to win matches sooner rather than later, but I do not think this will come on Sunday. Everton’s recent record against Palace speaks for itself and, despite the pessimist in me thinking this means they are due a loss, I can see Everton coming away with a hard-fought point. Whilst Palace are a serious threat going forward, which is why I back them to score against a leaky defence, it has been a tiring, draining week for them coming off the high of a last minute winner and an away day in Europe, therefore I can see this match being yet another draw for Everton.
About The Author
Leave a Reply