Everton vs West Ham: Match Preview

LONDON, ENGLAND – NOVEMBER 07: Manuel Lanzini of West Ham United and John Stones of Everton compete for the ball during the Barclays Premier League match between West Ham United and Everton at Boleyn Ground on November 7, 2015 in London, England. (Photo by Ian Walton/Getty Images) /

Everton vs West Ham: Match Preview

Everton look to capture three points at home against a hot West Ham side coming off a big win against the Tottenham Hotspur, and are currently sitting at 6th in the table. West Ham scored early with a header from Michail Antonio in the 7th minute on a Dimitri Payet corner and were able to hold on to this lead for the rest of the match.

Everton are coming off an unconvincing 3-1 win vs the league’s worst Aston Villa where they struggled to find any real rhythm or consistent attacking presence. Everton essentially scored twice from corner set pieces with Ramino Funes Mori’s goal coming directly from a corner and Lukaku’s coming shortly after the ball was crossed in. The other goal by Lennon was off a counter attack and Everton struggled to find offense though build-up play as they usually do.

In their previous meeting on November 7th at the Boleyn Ground, Everton drew West Ham 1-1 with goals from Manuel Lanzini and Romelu Lukaku and the 30th and 43th minutes respectively. It was an evenly fought game and Victor Moses of West Ham was given MOTM for his constant threat down the right wing. In this November match, West Ham were without their best player, Dimitri Payet, and he will look to make a difference against Everton the second time around.

Dimitri Payet is truly an impact performer for West Ham and perhaps is the single most important player to the West Ham team. On the season in 21 games, Payet has 7 goals and 6 assists, but his impact on the pitch is far more than those statistics show. Payet seemingly is accountable for almost all the goals produced by West Ham and is relied on by his teammates to produce goals for the team.

LONDON, ENGLAND – MARCH 02: Dimitri Payet of West Ham United in action during the Barclays Premier League match between West Ham United and Tottenham Hotspur at Boleyn Ground on March 2, 2016 in London, England. (Photo by Arfa Griffiths/West Ham United via Getty Images) /

It will be vital for Everton to limit the impact of the West Ham playmaker Payet and control the run of the game with possession to reduce the attacking threat that Payet and West Ham pose. Everton usually are able to have the majority of possession in matches with their play out of the back style which should work well to combat the West Ham side. West Ham do however do like to play long balls with fast strikers like Emmanuel Emenike and skilled long passers such as Mark Noble and Dimitri Payet.