Everton are have been toothless in attack for some time, but they’ll be almost body-less in attack for this FA Cup tie too, with a mini injury crisis besetting our surprisingly sizeable attacking stock.
The opposition tomorrow at Goodison Park is League One strugglers Peterborough United and with time ticking down on Sean Dyche’s spell at the club, a defeat here will pretty much end that era.
So, with pressure mounting, how will he line up his mighty Blues of Everton?
Who’s Out?
Well, there’s a bit of striker crisis at foot.
Youssef Chermiti missed out at the weekend due to a thigh issue and is set to be out for some weeks. To make matters worse, Dominic Calvert-Lewin has a slight ankle injury and Armando Broja came off after booting the turf at the weekend.
Rumour has it that Beto might be jetting off too, and if that’s the case, the Blues are looking very sparse up top.
Dwight McNeil remains out. No word on Seamus Coleman for this one after missing out at the weekend. Jesper Lindstrøm is also a doubt after being hooked at half-time through injury.
James Garner and Tim Iroegbunam are edging closer to a return and should both return to full training in next two weeks.
EVERTON SQUAD AVAILABLE VS PETERBOROUGH
Goalkeepers: Pickford, Virginia, Begovic
Defenders: Keane, Branthwaite, Tarkowski, O’Brien, Mykolenko, Coleman (DOUBT), Patterson, Young, Dixon
Midfielders: Doucoure, Gueye, Garner (INJURED), Iroegbuman (INJURED), Mangala, Armstrong
Wingers: McNeil (INJURED), Harrison, Ndiaye, Lindstrom (DOUBT)
Attackers: Calvert-Lewin (DOUBT), Beto, Chermiti (INJURED), Broja (DOUBT)
Tactics and Formation
Dyche is running out of time, so if he wants to experiment with altering the system in order to try to create more chances, this is the moment. Nathan Patterson is crying out for a start. So surely, he gets it here. Surely. Maybe.
Jake O’Brien also needs some minutes and so could come in. The same might be said for Michael Keane.
In midfield, there aren’t a tonne of options available. Although we might see Harrison Armstrong get a start after a decent performance when he was introduced at half-time against Bournemouth.
I’d also love to see Iliman Ndiaye at #10, but with limited options out wide, that seems unlikely. If Lindstrom is unavailable, the Blues just have Jack Harrison and Ndiaye as side options, although the undroppable Ashley Young may be moved into a more advanced role too.
Up top is anyone’s guess. If Beto isn’t about to leave, he’ll probably start as he’s the only fully-fit striker.
Starters (likelihood of starting rated out of 10)
Jordan Pickford – 6/10
Nathan Patterson – 6/10
Jake O’Brien – 6/10
Michael Keane – 6/10
Vitaliy Mykolenko – 8/10
Idrissa Gana Gueye – 7/10
Harrison Armstrong– 6/10
Abdoulaye Doucoure – 7/10
Jack Harrison – 7/10
Iliman Ndiaye – 8/10
Beto – 6/10
Bench
Joao Virginia
Asmir Begovic
Ashley Young
James Tarkowski
Jarrad Branthwaite
Orel Mangala
Harrison Armstrong
Dominic Calvert-Lewin
Armando Broja
