Everton and Fulham go head-to-head in the Premier League on Saturday evening as Marco Silva returns to his former club once again. The Toffees are on an impressive run of form, unbeaten in their last four, while Fulham are battling in the top half of the table.
Sean Dyche’s side started the season horrendously, failing to pick up a point in their opening four fixtures. The Merseyside outfit are starting to turn a corner, but they will be keen to continue their momentum as they search for a victory at Goodison Park. The Cottagers enjoyed a strong start to the campaign, but the capital club are now on a run of two defeats in a row, albeit against tough opposition in Manchester City and Aston Villa.
Everton Team News
Branthwaite back in training
Against Ipswich Town last time out, Jarrad Branthwaite didn’t make the trip after picking up an injury, meaning Michael Keane and James Tarkowski lined up in defence. The former scored Everton’s second goal and will be hoping to keep his place in the starting XI, but Branthwaite has now returned to training ahead of Fulham.
James Garner was another absentee, while the likes of Nathan Patterson and Seamus Coleman were both on the bench after spending a large portion of the campaign on the treatment table.
Everton Injuries and Suspensions | ||
|---|---|---|
Player | Injury | Potential Return Date |
Tim Iroegbunam | Ankle | 22/12/2024 |
Youssef Chermiti | Ankle | 23/11/2024 |
Armando Broja | Foot | 23/11/2024 |
Jarrad Branthwaite | Thigh | 26/10/2024 |
Jesper Lindstrom | Illness | 26/10/2024 |
James Garner | Back | No return date |
Sean Dyche drops injury update
Speaking ahead of Eveton’s fixture against Fulham, Dyche has provided an injury update, and it’s good news on Branthwaite. Armando Broja, Youssef Chermiti, and Tim Iroegbunam are unavailable, while Garner is currently seeing a specialist…
“Jimmy Garner we’re waiting on more news, just a specialist view, on a back injury. Broja is getting on the edge of coming into training, working with the sport science team. Chermiti is making progress but he’s still a number of weeks away. He’s trained all week [Branthwaite]. I made a call last week [not to include him] because it was important to have a clear week’s training so yes, he will be a part of the squad.”
Everton Predicted XI
Branthwaite comes back in
Although dropping Keane from the starting XI would seem quite harsh after securing a clean sheet and scoring at the weekend, the £80,000-per-week man isn’t as good as Branthwaite, was part of an Everton defence who were difficult to score against last season. The Toffees are undoubtedly a better side with Branthwaite alongside James Tarkowski, but Keane has picked up some form over the last few weeks.
Seamus Coleman has returned to fitness too, but faces a task to displace Ashley Young from the starting lineup currently.
- Everton Predicted XI: Pickford; Young, Tarkowski, Branthwaite, Mykolenko; Gueye, Doucoure; Harrison, McNeil, Ndiaye; Calvert-Lewin.
- Everton Predicted Substitutes: Begovic (GK), O’Brien (DEF), Patterson (DEF), Keane (DEF), Coleman (DEF), Armstrong (MID), Mangala (MID), Lindstrom (FWD), Beto (FWD).
Fulham Team News
Andersen is suspended
Although the Aston Villa defeat was a huge disappointment, losing Joachim Andersen during the game is also a significant blow. The defender was sent off, so he will be suspended for the trip to Everton. Carlos Vinicius, Timothy Castagne, Sasa Lukic, and Jorge Cuenca have all been on the treatment table of late and missed the game against Villa.
Issa Diop is the likely option to slot into the defence due to the absence of Andersen, while Andreas Pereira has been playing in a deeper midfield role to cover for Lukic in recent weeks.
Fulham Injuries and Suspensions | ||
|---|---|---|
Player | Injury | Potential return date |
Sasa Lukic | Shoulder | Being assessed |
Joachim Andersen | Suspension | 04/11/2024 |
Jorge Cuenca | Ankle | No return date |
Timothy Castagne | Thigh | No return date |
Carlos Vinicius | Calf | No return date |
Marco Silva provides injury update
Speaking to the media ahead of the trip to Everton, Silva has confirmed that Lukic will have out for another three to four weeks, while Castagne is also unavailable. On Cuenca and Vinicius, Silva suggests that they have a chance of featuring at Goodison Park.
“Cuenca and Vinicius have been working with the team, we will assess them tomorrow. They are close. Andersen is out, Lukic is still out for the next 3-4 weeks at least. Castagne is out too.”
Fulham Predicted XI
Diop comes into defence
With Andersen out injured, the natural replacement for the Danish defender will be Issa Diop. After two defeats on the trot, we could see more changes from Silva as he looks to swing the momentum back in Fulham’s favour. Sander Berge and Pereira started in the middle of the park against Aston Villa, but both players were substituted as Silva tried something different.
- Fuham Predicted XI: Leno; Tete, Diop, Bassey, Robinson; Pereira, Cairney; Adama, Smith Rowe, Iwobi; Jimenez.
- Fulham Predicted Substitutes: Benda (GK), Cuenca (DEF), Sessegnon (DEF), King (MID), Berge (MID), Wilson (MID), Reed (MID), Nelson (FWD), Rodrigo Muniz (FWD).