After just getting through in the League Cup tie at Huddersfield on Tuesday Everton are back in Premier League action facing Brighton at the Amex Stadium on Saturday.
This is another tricky away day for Everton as Graham Potter’s side have started the season well and could be a bit of a surprise package overall.
Potter was rumoured to be a candidate for the Blues job when Carlo Ancelotti left in June and he certainaly has his admirers in football as a young English coach preaching a positive game. In the end though of course, Rafa Benitez got the Toffees job.
The Seagulls coach has built on the solid defensive base left by his predecessor Chris Hughton. Potter’s side’s are playing some good, constructive football and already have six points in the bag this season.
Brighton’s best performers so far have been players like Pascal Gross and Neal Maupay. Interestingly their leading scorer Maupay, is being linked with a move to Goodison Park as speculation over late transfer deals increases. It’s hard to imagine Potter parting with him though.
As for the Blues, the game at Huddersfield Town underlined again all those old frailities in this current squad and the pressing need to try and bring in better quality players before the close of the transfer window.
Assuming no new players are signed before the weekend, which seems likely, obviously Benitez will return to the first choice players missing in mid-week for Saturday’s match.
After a positive start what has been particularly noticed in these early days of the new campaign – apart from the considerably improved energy, and width in attack – is the much greater influence his midfielders are having on Everton’s attack, something we saw against both Souhampton and at Leeds United.
Both Allan and especially Abdoulaye Doucoure are getting forward a lot more, pressing higher up the pitch and contributing positively to the team’s offensive efforts.
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This was something I have wanted to see from the midfield and I think it will be critical in enabling the Blues to play with a higher tempo and energy this season.
Goals from them will help take the pressure off the forwards (particularly Dominic Calvert-Lewin) who are still too heavily relied upon for goals.
The key problem is in central defence. Micheal Keane again made a mistake on Tuesday night, his third in successive games, which led to Hudderfield’s goal and his place must surely be in doubt.
However, to complicate things we still don’t know if Ben Godfrey will be ready and available to play on Saturday and if he can’t play Benitez has a big decision to make.
Assuming he returns to a flat back four, will he trust Keane again or bring in one of Mason Holgate or Jarrard Branthwaite to partner Yerry Mina?
The other uncertainty is the future of Richarlison, which has now been thrown into further doubt with renewed reports he might leave for PSG in the next few days. Regardless, assuming he’s still an Everton player, he will start against the Seagulls.
Benitez has already perhaps surprised people a little with how positive and attacking he has been both home and away and so I expect him again to set his stall out to try to win this match without taking undue risks.