Everton’s next fixture is daunting to say the least, with Manchester City the visitors to Hill Dickinson Stadium.
The Toffees want to get their push for European football back on track, but come up against a City side hell-bent on beating Arsenal to the Premier League title.
How would you have the side lined up if you were David Moyes? 🤩
Let's hope Beto is ready to go on Monday! 🤕
With other rivals picking up points in recent weeks, Everton can’t really afford any more slip-ups.
A huge effort is needed to take points off City – and Everton also have a dismal record against them that they’ll need to overcome.
The last time Everton beat City was back in 2017, when they produced a stunning performance to win 4-0 at Goodison Park.
And David Moyes ought to try and replicate the game plan used by Ronald Koeman that day.
When Everton thrashed Man City 4-0
It’s been a long time since Everton got three points against City in the Premier League.
But the last time they did in 2017, they did so emphatically.
Pep Guardiola was in his first season as manager at the Etihad, and it was a campaign that really opened his eyes to what the Premier League was all about.
Everton decimated his City side, showing an utterly ruthless edge in front of goal when the chances came.
City dominated the ball, having 71% possession.
But Everton restricted their opponents to just a few chances, and scored four from just six chances themselves.
Romelu Lukaku scored for the Toffees, with Tom Davies and Ademola Lookman – both teenagers at the time – on target too. Kevin Mirallas also scored.
The performance was perhaps the best we saw of the Koeman reign, and it simply entailed defensive grit combined with good centre-forward play.
Let us know your predictions ahead of Monday’s huge match on Merseyside! 😬
Recent history does not bode well for Everton… 🫣
Everton were very direct and Romelu Lukaku used his physicality to make life very uncomfortable for the City backline. He ran them ragged that day, as Koeman got his tactics spot on.
Everton were able to sit and soak up possession comfortably, and then use Lukaku as an outlet. And as per BBC Sport, the Toffees ran further and produced more sprints than the visitors.
David Moyes must replicate Koeman 2017 blueprint in Monday meeting
Moyes will do well to try and emulate that kind of performance on Monday when the teams meet at Hill Dickinson Stadium.
City will again have the lion’s share of possession, so should Everton again look to sit back and soak up the pressure. Realistically, there’s not really an alternative given how City play.
Beto is not Romelu Lukaku, but his style is not so dissimilar to the Belgian.
Moyes should instruct his side to play direct to the Guinea-Bissau international, who has the potential to unsettle the likes of Marc Guehi and Abdukodir Khusanov, just as Lukaku did Nicolas Otamendi and John Stones.
What would your message to Moyes be now Beto is back fit for City?
Koeman also used two teenagers in Davies and Lookman against a Guardiola side.
Much has been made of Moyes’ management of young players this season.
Obviously it’s an entirely different situation to 2017, but Moyes should not rule out using someone like Tyrique George, whose pace could cause real damage.
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