View: DCL to start after being passed fit – Everton predicted XI v Liverpool
Everton are set to face Liverpool at Anfield on Saturday in their second Merseyside derby of the season, with the Blues looking to avoid a third successive Premier League loss.
Carlo Ancelotti’s men were no match for an on-fire Manchester City side on Wednesday evening, losing 3-1 at Goodison Park after pulling back level just before half-time.
Prior to the Manchester City loss, Everton failed to claim a home victory over relegation-threatened Fulham, suffering defeat courtesy of a Josh Maja brace.
At Goodison News, we have named our predicted Everton XI to take on Liverpool on Wednesday…
There was very little that Jordan Pickford could do about Manchester City’s goals on his return to action for the Blues in midweek, so Ancelotti will likely keep him in net against the Reds.
With Yerry Mina set to miss out against Jurgen Klopp’s side this weekend after being forced off through injury early into the City tie, either Mason Holgate or Ben Godfrey could start in the centre in the Colombian’s stead. We expect Godfrey to line-up alongside Michael Keane, while Seamus Coleman could start on the right for the purpose of rotation. Lucas Digne faces no competition for his place on the left.
Allan was left out of the squad against Man City in anticipation of him playing a major role against Liverpool, so the Brazilian should return to the line-up for the first time since mid-December, assuming there are no fitness hiccups beforehand.
Abdoulaye Doucoure is Everton’s engineman and has been a near-constant presence when fit under Ancelotti so he should start, and though Tom Davies has been performing well of late, the Italian coach tends to have a preference to play Gylfi Sigurdsson in whichever role that he sees fit.
Richarlison won’t be needed to lead the line this time out so he should return to his usual spot on the left side of attack, while James Rodriguez may come back into the fray after spending the first half on the substitutes’ bench against the Citizens.
With Dominic Calvert-Lewin finally passed fit to feature once again [Independent], it is expected that the forward will come straight back into an Everton side that have massively missed his impact over the previous two league fixtures.
Everton haven’t beaten Liverpool in the Premier League in over ten years so the odds would assumedly be stacked against the Blues going into this match up.
However the Reds are a significantly weaker team than when Everton faced them earlier in the season, with a number of top players missing through injury.
Ancelotti will be desperate to avoid a third consecutive defeat in the league as the club pursue European qualification ahead of next season, and a result against bitter rivals Liverpool could kick start a much needed end of season resurgence.
In other Everton news, Josh King has conceded that he has a point to prove at Everton after joining the club from Bournemouth in the winter transfer window.