Everton face their big club opposition at Goodison Park on the weekend in Manchester City.
David Moyes will be eager to add another three points on the board after their impressive showing last weekend at the City Ground.
But it is going to be a tough test despite Man City’s relative struggles this season.
Paul Merson has predicted Everton to draw against City on Saturday. after he was embarrassed by the Toffees last weekend.
Everton are now on the cusp of mathematically securing their spot in the Premier League for next season.
However, some eagle-eyed fans will have noticed one of their key players was missing from training on Thursday.
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Jordan Pickford not pictured in Everton training
Everton have been handed injury boosts, with Iliman Ndiaye and Dwight McNeil returning to action following their respective issues.
However, Thursday’s training images from Goodison Park did not show goalkeeper Jordan Pickford in action.
Speaking to the media ahead of the game against Manchester City, Moyes did not raise any worries over a potential injury for Pickford.
The only absence he commented on was Seamus Coleman’s.
“I just chose not to include Seamus [vs Forest]. We had three right-backs who could play there. So, I will probably have a similar decision this week, which I may change.”
Pickford was criticised by Neville Southall earlier in the week in what was a bizarre outburst from the Everton legend.
But there’s no doubt the England number one has been one of the best players on Merseyside over recent years.
Why Jordan Pickford missed Everton training
On Wednesday evening, Pickford and his partner announced the birth of their third child.
So, the goalkeeper certainly has a credible reasoning for seemingly missing training on Thursday, but he is not expected to miss the game on the weekend.
Chris Sutton has hailed Pickford’s form this season and he added yet another clean sheet to his name against Forest.
Missing Pickford in the starting XI would be a huge blow, but there seemed to be no concern in Moyes’ press conference on Thursday.
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