News

Everton welcome Fulham to Goodison Park on Saturday afternoon (15th of April) in a 3 o’clock fixture.

Marco Silva returns to Goodison for the first time since being sacked by the club in December 2019 in what many see to be a must win game for the Blues.

RECENT FORM

Everton will be hoping to bounce back from a disappointing 2-0 defeat at Manchester United last weekend.

The Blues currently sit 17th in the league on 27 points, only out of the bottom 3 on goal difference.

Sean Dyche’s side seemed to have regained a fighting spirit in recent weeks, with the players sticking to the task and grinding out results against the likes of Tottenham and Chelsea.

This spirit seemed to be absent last weekend at Old Trafford, with Everton comfortably beaten in Manchester.

Dyche will be hoping last weekend’s performance will prove to be an anomaly, as a result on Saturday will be vital if Everton wish to keep their heads above water.

Fulham, on the other hand, have endured quite the slump of late. Marco Silva’s side have failed to win a game since late February, having again been beaten last time out by West Ham 1-0.

Despite a strong start to the season, performances have been poor of late with many citing the reason to be that Fulham may be ‘on the beach’ so to speak, sitting comfortably on 39 points at 10th position in the league.

TEAM NEWS

There are some significant absentees on both sides which will likely have a huge bearing on the outcome of the game. Starting with Everton, midfielder Abdoulaye Doucoure is still serving his suspension after being sent off against Spurs a fortnight ago.

With regards to injuries, Sean Dyche has confirmed that captain Seamus Coleman has sustained a hamstring injury and will not play on Saturday. This is a huge blow to the Toffee’s, with Coleman being one of the most consistent performers this season along with displaying brilliant leadership on the pitch. It will be interesting to see how Dyche addresses Colemans absence.

Will right back Nathan Patterson be given a chance back in the side after injuring his knee in January? Or, will Ben Godfrey move over to right back and Vitaly Mykolenko be brought in at left back?

Many Evertonians are hopeful to see number 9 Dominic Calvert-Lewin back in the squad on Saturday, since the striker has been pictured back in full training with the first team this week. However, Sean Dyche was purposefully vague when questioned on Dominic’s fitness, only stating that ‘He’s training and going along well’.

Fulham too are missing a star man through injury after Alexander Mitrovic received an eighth-game ban after putting his hands on an official as Fulham were dumped out the FA cup by Manchester United in late March.

The Serbian international has been lethal in the Premier League this season scoring 11 in 21 games, Fulham have looked toothless at times in his absence.

Former Everton Centre-Back Shane Duffy is still out for Fulham along with full back Layvin Kurzawa with a sideband tear.

THE MATCH

Everton fans will remember how Marco Silva likes to set up his teams. Silva is a pragmatic coach who often adjusts his side depending on the opposition.

It is likely that Fulham will set up in a 4-2-3-1 and will look to survive the early siege of Everton at Goodison Park and look to counter on the transition when they win the ball back.

It is expected that young Carlos Vinicius will start up front for Fulham with the Mitrovic suspension. Vinicius is talented yet raw, Everton Centre-Back James Tarkowski and Michael Keane will look to show their superior experience and keep the Brazilian quiet.

It will be interesting to see how Dyche’s side set up, whether the more attack minded Patterson will get the nod and Everton will look to go at Fulham or will Dyche be more cautious and go with Mykolenko.

Dyche also has a decision to make on his minefield, I think young James Garner is set for a start after impressing off the bench over the past few weeks. However, Dyche could move Alex Iwobi inside again and loo to overrun the 2 sitting Fulham midfielders

The game will kick off at 3:00 PM on Saturday the 15th of April and will be covered extensively on Toffee TV.

Mathew Fallon