Mark Lawrenson predicts Everton clash vs Arsenal
Mark Lawrenson says Everton are lucky they sealed their Premier League status against Crystal Palace because he doesn’t expect them to beat Arsenal.
The Toffees sealed their place in next season’s top flight with a comeback win on Thursday [May 19] and now head to Arsenal with nothing to play for, while the Gunners must win to have a chance of keeping their Champions League hopes alive.
Lawrenson, writing in his BBC Sport predictions column, admitted that had the blues needed something from the game he wouldn’t be confident of them getting it, as he predicted a 2-1 home win considering the poor away record Everton have had this season.
“Everton are safe after their thrilling comeback from 2-0 down to beat Crystal Palace on Thursday, and their fans are probably still getting their breath back now,” he said. “Some of them might only just be getting home.
“It’s just as well Everton have got the job done already, really – I wouldn’t exactly be confident about their chances of staying in the Premier League if Frank Lampard’s side had to get anything at Emirates Stadium to avoid the drop.
“So, the best news for the Toffees is that this result doesn’t matter. Arsenal are hardly reliable themselves at the moment but they are at home and, although Everton won at Leicester at the start of May, their record on the road is still very poor indeed.
“All of this means I am expecting the Gunners to win – but I don’t think they can rescue their hopes of making the top four from here.”
Safety
From Christmas onwards the main goal of this season was to keep the team in the top flight and Frank Lampard has managed to do that.
The final game will be a mini party for the fans as they celebrate staying up, but Arsenal will be keen to ruin that party with one of their own as they must win to have any chance of catching Tottenham.
Lampard can look to shuffle his team and give players such as Dele Alli a chance to prove they’re worthy of a place for next season, or whether they need to be moved aside to strengthen.
But with breathing room and no pressure, it could bring out a really positive result for the team to be able to end the season on a positive note after a real rollercoaster.
There’s no pressure, no expectation and no need to panic. Fans should just enjoy the day out and have an eye ahead to next season for this one.
In other Everton news, Paul Merson stunned by Everton ace who has ‘papered over their cracks’, predicts clash v Arsenal
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