It’s been another interesting week off the pitch for Everton. David Moyes and the players were able to get away for warm weather training in the UAE, a session described as ‘good’ and ‘positive’ by the Everton boss. Back on Merseyside there were a flurry of announcements made by the club, including the news that Kevin Thelwell will leave his position as Director of Football. There has also been news that Everton will not look to trigger the 1-year extension in the contract of Abdoulaye Doucoure, suggesting the club are now looking at contracts and transfers for next season. There are also strong rumours that Angus Kinnear might be the next CEO of Everton Football Club. Regardless of your personal reaction to these pieces of news, it is positive to see movement from The Friedkin Group. Many conversations amongst fans in recent weeks would have centered around TFG getting the structure in place behind-the-scenes and also having clarity on who might be remaining in Royal Blue next season.
It’s been over a week since Everton rescued a point away to Brentford. The Jake O’Brien diving header is still being replayed on loop in this Evertonian’s household. Once again there were a lot of positive talking points to reflect on as the Toffees extended their unbeaten run to seven games in the Premier League and whilst the manager is being coy when commenting on the club’s Premier League safety/status, I don’t think there are many fans right now who are looking down.
The trip to Wolves on Saturday night is an interesting proposition. The West Midlands outfit haven’t experienced the same new manager bounce under Vitor Pereira. The Portugues manager was once considered to be the Everton boss, before a questionable phone appearance on Sky Sports News saw the even more questionable then Everton board choose Frank Lampard. He and his side will likely have a point to prove at home to Everton this weekend. They currently sit 10 points behind the blues and are still being eyed up by Leicester and Ipswich as potential relegation fodder.
If You Know Your History… Everton v Wolves Through the Years
Earlier this season, in the midst of a very bleak run, Everton managed to secure a huge 4-0 win over Wolves under the lights at Goodison. Ashley Young and Mangala scored for the Toffees, before Wolves’ defender Craig Dawson bagged a brace of own goals. Neither manager from that game remains in their respective dugouts ahead of tomorrow’s clash. Wolves however is a familiar opponent for David Moyes from his first spell at the club.
David Moyes faced Wolves a total of 8 times during his original reign at Goodison Park. An Everton team managed by the Scot has only been beaten by Wolves once. With his sides managing 3 wins and 4 draws.
Overall, with fixtures dating back to 1889, Everton have faced Wolves 143 times. Everton have bested Wolves on 64 occasions, Wolves have won 51 times and the sides have been inseparable on 28 meetings.
In recent years, Wolves have been somewhat of a bogey side for Everton. Prior to the 4-0 thrashing earlier this season, Everton had only managed to beat Wolves 3 times since their return to the Premier League in 2018. In fact Everton have lost 5 times in their last 7 meetings against Wolves. So they will certainly be hoping that they can pick up where they left off at Goodison earlier in the season.
Notable goals and moments against Wolves in times gone by would include Phil Neville scoring a screamer at Molineux, Richarlison scoring his first Everton league goal and me being forced to watch David Moyes’ Everton play out a 0-0 draw at an already relegated Wolves where Sylvain Distin played at left-back.
Team News
Seamus Coleman could feature this weekend after David Moyes confirmed he is ‘much nearer’ to a return. Meanwhile Amando Broja, Iliman Ndiaye, Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Dwight McNeil remain unavailable.
Wolves also have an extensive absentee list. Most notably the absence of Matheus Cunha, who will miss this game through suspension. The hosts also find themselves without Leon Chiwone, Yerson Mosquera, Enso Medina, Sasa Kalajdzic, Rodrigo Gomes, Goncalo Guedes and Emmanuel Badobre.
What the Manager Says
Moyes on the Run of 7 Game Unbeaten – “I think when I’ll look back on it it’ll be a big achievement but when you’re in it all you can think about is the next game. Every game at the moment for us right now is about taking points. I think if you’d said to me when I came in that we’d go 7 unbeaten and shake your hand and say ‘thanks very much’”.
Moyes on Wolves – “I think they’ve done a really good job at Wolves. They seem to be back on track now. I think they’ve played well in a few games and got a win against Bournemouth before the Cup game”.
Everton Key Player
Beto – An off day against Brentford for the man who now has 5 goals in his last 5 appearances for the Toffees. Had things gone differently for Beton last time out, we might be writing that he’d scored 8 in 5. Such is this crazy and sometimes cruel game we call football. His efforts and contributions cannot be dismissed after one goalless game. The imposing forward earned himself a Premier League Player of the Month nomination for February and still remains our only tried and tested option up top. The return to fitness of Chermitti and also the likely return of Broja in the coming weeks will give the big man some competition for place. Here’s hoping he handles that as well as he’s handled life under Moyes so far. He is still a man in form and a man no defence will want to come up against. He’s shown against the best in the league this season that he is a handful for defenders and not who Wolves will want to battle against as they themselves try to claw their way out of a relegation battle. The former KFC employee says he needs ‘feeding’, so here’s hoping the passes from his teammates serve up more Beto goals.
One to Watch for Wolves:
Joao Gomes – For the second game in a row, the one I’ve wanted to highlight is unavailable. A moment of madness from the Wolves captain in the cup sees Cunha unavailable for this weekend’s game. The player I want to highlight is Brazilian central midfielder Joao Gomes. His stats don’t scream ‘star-player’ but his recent form suggests his stock is on the rise. The 24-year old has featured 25 times for Wolves this season, scoring only 3 goals but with 2 of those coming in February. Outside of Mathius Cunha, Gomes is Wolves’ top scorer since the beginning of 2025. We’ve talked a lot in recent games about matches being won and lost in midfield and this weekend’s clash will be no different. Everton will have to isolate and frustrate a man who also received a red card this season in order to stop him being at his creative best.
Final Thoughts
Fifteen goals and seven games unbeaten. David Moyes finally had an extended period of time with his squad over the last 10 days and who knows what could happen as a result. Whilst we are certainly the most hopeful we’ve been in recent seasons that our Premier League status is secured, the upcoming games against Wolves and West Ham are critical in confirming that. The run of games after that looks tough and I suspect Moyes will have challenged the players to get as close to that magic number of 40 points before the Merseyside Derby at Anfield. If there is one thing the remaining fixtures show, it’s that we have to beat the teams around us. With challenging fixtures on the horizon Wolves, Ipswich and Southampton will be the 3 games that every Evertonian will expect to win.
Prediction
2-0. Wolves got a notable victory against Aston Villa back in February. That was their only home win in the league in 2025. Goalscoring and keeping eleven players on the pitch appears to be an issue for the side in 17th. Everton arrive unbeaten in 3 away games and off the back of some time away. Hopefully the 10 day gap gave rest and focus without stopping the momentum of the Moyes return. I’ll continue my optimism and say Everton do the double on Wolves this season. I’ll back Beto to bag another and I’ll also wishfully remark that Lindstrom finally gets an Everton goal.
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