Everton return to action in the Premier League this afternoon, hosting Brentford as Sean Dyche looks to create some space between his side and the relegation zone.
After losing the opening four league fixtures of the season, Everton have toughened up and been defeated only one time across seven outings, but with four draws in that timeframe, more work is needed.
23/24
Gtech Stadium
1-0 win
23/24
Goodison Park
3-1 win
22/23
Goodison Park
1-0 win
22/23
Gtech Stadium
1-1 draw
21/22
Goodison Park
3-2 loss
21/22
Gtech Stadium
1-0 loss
The Goodison Park side have won their last three matches against the Bees, and with the home advantage, must be optimistic that they can make progress.
Everton team news
Jarrad Branthwaite returned from injury before the international break, keeping a clean sheet against West Ham United, and will be crucial against a mean Brentford frontline.
There’s further good news on the injury front, for Dwight McNeil is expected to be fit after missing the Hammers draw two weeks back.
Armando Broja and Youssef Chermiti have both taken to first-team training but will not feature on Saturday. Moreover, Tim Iroegbunam, James Garner and Seamus Coleman remain out.
Chalkboard
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Despite pulling out of international duty, deadly duo Bryan Mbeumo and Yoane Wissa are expected to be fit, and the same again for Ethan Pinnock. Mbeumo, in particular, will be a force to be reckoned with on Merseyside.
Why Bryan Mbeumo is the biggest threat
Believe it or not, Tottenham Hotspur are the only team to have outscored Brentford in the Premier League this season, something that will have been discussed repeatedly at the Everton tactical table over the past two weeks.
1.
Tottenham
23
2.
Man City
22
2=
Brentford
22
4.
Liverpool
21
4=
Chelsea
21
Everton languish in 18th place at the other end of such standings, with just ten strikes from 11 matches so far. Branthwaite’s return will be crucial, especially with Mbeumo having scored eight goals from 11 Premier League matches this term – that’s a tally bettered only by Manchester City’s Erling Haaland.
It’s going to be vital that the Toffees stand firm at the back while mustering all the attacking power that they can. It begs the question: should Dominic Calvert-Lewin reprise his starting berth at number nine once again?
The 27-year-old, who is out of contract at the end of the season, has been in dreadful form of late, blanking across his past seven Premier League matches. Funnily enough, Everton are actually creating a bit, and he should be dropped for this one.
Lacking mobility, it’s probably the right call. Broja may not be ready to make his debut, but Beto has shown promising signs this season and could be the man for the job.
Why Everton should unleash Beto from the outset
Beto joined Everton from Udinese for a £26m fee in 2023, but he failed to adapt to life on English shores, only bagging three goals in the Premier League.
This year, Dyche has used him as a second-half option, and indeed, to impressive effect. Beto scored the last-gasp equaliser in Everton’s draw against Fulham several matches back and hit the post and netted (though it was chalked off after a VAR review) in the following fixture against Southampton.
He’s more athletic and mobile than Calvert-Lewin and will be determined to finally be awarded a starting berth to showcase his suitability.
Ranking among the top 24% of forwards across Europe’s top five leagues over the past year for successful take-ons and the top 15% for touches in the attacking penalty area per 90, as per FBref, he’s clearly got something that Calvert-Lewin’s who bears all the resemblance of a deep-rooted tree at times, lacks.
A successful take-on is recorded when a player beats their opponent by directly carrying the ball past them while retaining possession.
And given that journalist Sam Tighe has hailed him as a striker who “spooks defenders” through his muscular physicality and surprising springiness, it’s surely time to unleash him.
It would, to the least, provide Everton with more than they currently yield with Calvert-Lewin up top. Mbeumo – and Wissa – are bound to cause problems at Everton’s ground, and McNeil’s creativity and Iliman Nidaye’s electric-paced efforts will fall flat without a reliable talisman.
Who knows, perhaps this will prove to be the springboard that Beto needs to live up to that rather lofty price tag and prove himself within the Premier League scene.
Given that the 26-year-old has won 56% of his aerial battles in the top flight this year too, as per Sofascore, it would appear that he has the frame and aerial understanding to compensate for Calvert-Lewin’s prospective absence – after all, he’s 6 foot 4.
Dyche needs to find an answer to the threat of Mbeumo, and while Beto isn’t a player who’s cut from the same cloth, he has his talents and can apply them to emphatic effect at Goodison Park this afternoon.
Everton have enjoyed their football when playing Brentford in recent encounters but must be wary of a fluid and ferocious strikeforce.
Maybe the visitors will get themselves on the scoresheet. It’s up to Dyche to make the requisite adjustments and ensure that his team score more.
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