EPL Preview: Everton Vs Wolverhampton Wanderers
In the second week of the premier league, Wolverhampton Wanderers travel to Goodison Park to face Everton. The Wolvers would never fancy a trip to the Park, but would be facing a side that is yet to figure out what went wrong last week. Much was expected from David Moyes’s men, with many considering them to perhaps finish in the Champions league spot. However, the Rovers dominated Everton in their premier league opener, defeating David Moyes’s XI 1-0.
The defeat has put manager David Moyes under some heavy pressure, like all managers who lose on the first day. This would mean that Everton would be looking to bounce back from the defeat in order to get them back into the race to finish above their previous one.
The Wolves, on the hand, managed to defeat Stoke City in their opening fixture and manager Mick McCarthy was thrilled by the result. However, the Wolves managed only four away victories last season, scoring just 19 goals. So any points would be hugely appreciated by the manager
The starting XI for Everton would be: Howard(GK); Distin, Jagielka, Neville, Baines; Arteta, Fellani, Pienaar, Bilyaletdinov; Saha, Cahill
And the starting XI for Wolverhamption Wanderers is: Hahnemann(GK); Berra, Craddock, Foley, Ward; Jones, Henry, Milijas, Jarvis; Fletcher, Ebanks-Blake
For Everton, Louis Saha would be looking to get his mind back into the game, following his anonymous performance against Blackburn last weekend. The player would want to play with his full potential if he wants to cement his place in the starting XI. On the other hand, Jelle Van Damme had a brilliant run in against Stoke and manage to neutralize any attack coming towards him. The back line looked peaceful and the defender would be looking to repeat their feat against Everton. However, Dunne is to be tested before the match and is doubtful owing to an ankle issue.
Everton have been unbeaten in their last 12 home games in the premier league, which led them to almost finish in the Europa league spots. However, their start of the season was just plain terrible, as the team seemed lost and confused. David Moyes’s men couldn’t keep possession and didn’t combine well.
The Rovers took complete advantage of the situation and managed to secure a comfortable home win. The loss put a major question mark on their pre-season success and the manager would be looking to change his tactics. If the Wolves do manage an upset over Everton today, it would be the first time in nearly 24 games that Mick McCarthy’s men would manage back to back wins. Following their 2-1 victory over Stoke last weekend, they would have the much needed momentum needed to pull a major upset. However, chances of success are minimal for the Wolves, as they have never won a single game at Everton since 1979.
For Everton, the strategy would be to do exactly what manager David Moyes says in order to secure a win. Louis Saha, Mikel Arteta, Tim Cahill and Leon Osman were all useless at Ewood Park last weekend. These are the key players of the club and they need to drastically up their game come Saturday. The player possess immense quality and talent and would need to get their heads back into the game. If Everton is to maintain their impressive home record, these would need to attack from the opening whistle.
Wolves manager Mick McCarthy claims that he has no issues with midfielder David Jones, despite reports claiming that contracts between the Wolves and the player have broken down. Both the parties met in the pre-season and a deal has not been struck as yet. The club have officially announced that negotiations for a new contract have been stalled. The manager claims that Chief executive of the club, Jez Moxey, has not made his intentions clear regarding the issue and doesn’t know what would transpire. Such mentality and unrest at the Wolves squad is expected to hamper their chances of winning the squad.
Prediction: Everton would shake off their cobwebs and manage to keep their 12 match unbeaten home run at bay by defeating the Wolves 2-0.
Odds: Everton 6/2, Wolves 9/1, Draw 4/1
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