Paul Merson predicts result of Everton clash v Brighton in Premier League
Everton will struggle to claim three points against Roberto de Zerbi and Brighton in the Premier League on Saturday 24 February, according to Paul Merson.
The Sky Sports pundit was “shocked” by the Toffees performance against Crystal Palace on Monday (19 February) and has predicted that they will lose 3-0 to the Seagulls.
After a run of eight consecutive league matches without a win, Everton have the opportunity to gain daylight between themselves and Luton Town, with the Hatters facing Manchester City in the FA Cup.
Writing for Sportskeeda on Thursday (22 February), he said: “I watched Everton last week and I was quite shocked – they were very poor against Crystal Palace. The thing with this game is that Everton were poor last year as well, and they won this exact fixture by a 5-1 margin. This is a hard game for them, however, and I don’t see a repeat of last season.
“Brighton need to win as much as Everton do this weekend. If their manager wants a job at a bigger club, he needs to bring some consistency into his teams. Brighton are too up and down at the moment.
“Everton were very fortunate against Palace at the end, and I thought that was a very disappointing performance. Brighton are the superior force when it comes to passing and movement, and I’m going to back them to win this game.”
Can Sean Dyche save Everton once again?
The current Toffees manager has already steered the club away from relegation once after Frank Lampard avoided the dreaded drop to the Championship on the last day of the 2021/22 campaign.
If not for the 10-point deduction due to a breach in Profit and Sustainability rules this season, Everton would be five points away from the top half of the Premier League table and sitting comfortably.
That is not the current situation, sadly, and the Merseyside club are in desperate need of points soon. Four points behind Nottingham Forest, and just one point above Luton, who are in the relegation zone, they are well and truly in a sticky situation.
Goals have been extremely rare to come by, having scored just five goals in the last nine matches in all competitions. Something drastic needs to change at Goodison Park, and Dominic Calvert-Lewin getting back into goalscoring form would be a good start.
In other Everton news, Dele Alli has shared an image of him and Tottenham star Son Heung-Min after the Toffees reached an agreement with Spurs
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.