Everton vs Arsenal
Date: 07/04/2019
K/O: 14:05
Venue: Goodison Park
TV: Sky Sports Main Event
Referee: Kevin Friend
Everton host Arsenal in a battle of two of the most inform teams in the league on Sunday afternoon.
Arsenal travel to Merseyside in the driving seat for the Champions League places after a run of five wins and a draw in the last six, meaning a win over Everton would lift them into third place above rivals Tottenham.
A win however is far from certain with Marco Silva finally getting a tune out of his Everton team. Since a dispiriting defeat at his former club Watford, Silva has guided his team to four wins in five and a draw against Liverpool.
Key to this has been four clean sheets and the sparkling form of Sigurdsson, Richarlison and Calvert Lewin. The youthful zest of Richarlison and Calvert Lewin combined with Sigurdsson’s creativity has finally seen Silva’s approach bare fruit after a rocky start to life at Goodison Park.
Arsenal come into the game off the back of a sizzling performance against Newcastle which underlined their credentials as favourites for the third spot as they combine a great run of form with the best fixtures in the run-in, with the Gunners facing none of the top-six before the season ends.
What Unai Emery’s side will be wary of is their stuttering away form. The Spaniard has certainly made them a lot tougher on the road but flaws still remain and if Arsenal do have a worry it is that their best form has tended to be saved for the Emirates this season; indeed the Gunners’ only away wins this season are at Cardiff, Newcastle, Fulham, Bournemouth and Huddersfield.
So a win on Sunday would represent another marker in the top four battle.
Everton have overcome an indifferent season which has seen Silva questioned, with recent performances against Liverpool and Chelsea showing a more gritty, pragmatic style from the Portuguese manager who has had a tendency to play too expressively against the elite for the players he often has at his disposal.
Silva only has injury worries over Yerry Mina who aggravated his hamstring injury on international duty with Colombia, although given the form of Zouma and Keane this shouldn’t be a huge problem.
Arsenal will be without long term injured players Mavropanos, Holding, Bellerin and Welbeck. Xhaka and Koscielny are touch and go with groin and foot injuries respectively. Star forward Aubameyang should shake off illness to start, although with Napoli on the horizon he could again be rested. Midfielder Torreira will miss out through suspension.
Emery will also be relying on Mesut Ozil to perform as he has in recent home games and will be desperate for Koscielny to return, otherwise he may be forced to again rely on the increasingly erratic Mustafi to cope with Richarlison and Calvert Lewin. This battle is where the game could be decided, as could the attacking thrusts of wonderful left backs Digne and Kolasinac.
Predicted Starting XIs
Everton (4-5-1): Pickford; Coleman, Zouma, Keane, Digne; Gueye, Gomes; Richarlison, Sigurdsson, Bernard; Calvert Lewin.
Arsenal (3-4-3): Leno; Mustafi, Sokratis, Monreal; Jenkinson, Guendouzi, Ramsey, Kolasinac; Iwobi, Lacazette, Aubameyang
Prediction: Everton 2 Arsenal 1
