Dimitar Berbatov predicts result of Everton v Sheffield United
Dimitar Berbatov is backing Sheffield United to beat Everton when the sides meet at Bramall Lane on Boxing Day.
The former Manchester United striker believes the Blades will win 1-0 against the Toffees despite Everton’s fantastic league form.
Sheffield United are yet to win in the Premier League this season and as Carlo Ancelotti’s side sit in the top four, this prediction is somewhat surprising.
Berbatov told Metro, “Every week I think Sheffield United will surprise us and get their first win of the season.
“Everton are bang in form but I still think that Blades win isn’t far away and I’m backing it here. 1-0.”
The former Spurs striker doesn’t exactly dive into too much detail about why he thinks relegation-threatened Sheffield United will triumph over the Toffees.
Everton may field a weakened team against the Blades which could have swayed Berbatov’s thinking as he made his prediction.
Richarlison is set to miss the match due to the Premier League’s concussion rules after the Brazilian came off during Wednesday’s Carabao Cup loss to Manchester United after being clattered by Eric Bailly.
James Rodriguez is also set to miss Saturday’s game as he continues his recovery from his most recent knock.
With a daunting clash against Manchester City just two days after the Sheffield United game, Ancelotti may rest some key players as his side take on the club rooted to the bottom of the Premier League.
Ancelotti may even drop Dominic Calvert-Lewin and give Cenk Tosun a chance to shine as the in-form Toffees striker is yet to miss a game this season.
A win will be expected by Everton fans though and anything less would be deemed a major failure following the club’s recent impressive league form.
In other Everton news, our panel of Toffees Super Fans have told us what changes they would make to Ancelotti’s team for Boxing Day’s game.