Four changes as Abdoulaye Doucoure decision made – Everton confirmed XI v Crystal Palace
Everton manager Sean Dyche has made four changes to his starting XI for the upcoming clash with Crystal Palace.
The Toffees welcome the Eagles to Goodison Park on Wednesday (17 January) in an FA Cup third round replay, with the two clubs having initially played out a goalless draw at Selhurst Park at the beginning of January.
Joao Virginia comes in for Jordan Pickford in goal, with the latter having started in the 0-0 Premier League draw at home to Aston Villa on Sunday (14 January).
Ahead of him, Nathan Patterson comes in for Seamus Coleman at right-back, with Vitaliy Mykolenko continuing at left-back, as centre-backs James Tarkowski and Jarrad Branthwaite keep their places.
Amadou Onana retains his place in midfield with James Garner, but Andre Gomes comes in for Abdoulaye Doucoure, with Dyche having explained on Tuesday (16 January) that the former Watford man had a knock.
Going forward, Jack Harrison and Dominic Calvert-Lewin start once more, but Dwight McNeil replaces Arnaut Danjuma.
Tough test
Toffees manager Dyche certainly went for it in the first meeting between the two clubs at Selhurst Park, with the boss opting for a strong starting XI.
And it is a similar scenario this time around, with Everton clearly wanting to progress as far as possible in this competition.
The man in the dugout could be forgiven for instead wanting to focus on the club’s Premier League future, particularly after the latest charge handed to Everton regarding their breach of the competition’s financial rules.
But a successful cup run would be warmly welcomed by fans, who haven’t had too many reasons to celebrate in recent times.
Crystal Palace will, however, be well up for the task, with Roy Hodgson also set to be eager to go far in the famous tournament.
Both managers would, of course, wanted to have avoided a replay, but neither could force a goal in the first clash at Selhurst Park earlier this month.
In other Everton news, Chris Sutton cannot believe it live on BBC amid a new charge against the Goodison Park outfit.
For more Everton news, follow us on Facebook or join our brand new WhatsApp Channel for instant updates to be sent straight to your phone.