By Daniel Feliciano

3rd Feb, 2023 | 11:10am

Chris Sutton predicts result of Everton Premier League showdown v Arsenal

Chris Sutton believes being Everton manager is like “being made captain of the Titanic a couple of hours after it hit the iceberg” following Sean Dyche’s appointment.

The Toffees brought in Dyche to replace Frank Lampard as the club look to avoid relegation for a second consecutive season, having earned just three wins all season and currently sitting in 19th place in the table.

But Dyche will start his Everton career in a clash against league leaders Arsenal and Sutton told BBC Sport (2 February) that he expects the Gunners to win the game 2-0 at Goodison, and explained the “huge” job that he faces for the rest of the season.

“Arsenal rested a few players in their FA Cup tie against Manchester City and paid the price,” he said.

“They still played pretty well at Etihad Stadium though and I think they have had a really good window – signing Jorginho, Cedric Trossard and Jakub Kiwior to strengthen their squad for their title push.

“Everton, in contrast, did not sign anyone and it looks like their new manager Sean Dyche has got a huge job on his hands to keep them up – he’s actually lost a player, with Antony Gordon moving to Newcastle.

“We know the Goodison Park crowd will get behind the team and, the way that Dyche manages, he will be trying to extract every last ounce of effort out of his players.

“So, the endeavour will be there, but I still don’t see Everton getting a win or even managing a draw.

“Arsenal are just far too good for them and, as I said on the Monday Night Club, getting the Everton job now is like being made captain of the Titanic, a couple of hours after it hit the iceberg.”

Trouble

Everton are the Titanic right now, and Dyche is the man that has been appointed as captain to steer clear of the iceberg that is in our way.

Relegation is a huge issue that simply cannot be ignored, and the board did the new man absolutely no favours by weakening the squad in the transfer window by selling Anthony Gordon and signing nobody, while also bringing him in with his opening games being against Arsenal and Liverpool.

Victories are hard enough to come by already with the way the squad and team is set up, but now Dyche has to try and get morale up while navigating two of the toughest games in the division.

This is a chance for him to find his strongest team and best performers for what he wants from the team after offering a clean slate to everyone at the club, while knowing that fans won’t judge him on these results and that any points would be a bonus.