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Mina absence confirmed as Everton face injury hit Watford

By Matt Townsend

LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND - OCTOBER 23: Joshua King of Watford in action with Michael Keane and Andros Townsend of Everton during the Premier League match between Everton and Watford at Goodison Park on October 23, 2021 in Liverpool, England. (Photo by Visionhaus/Getty Images)
LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND - OCTOBER 23: Joshua King of Watford in action with Michael Keane and Andros Townsend of Everton during the Premier League match between Everton and Watford at Goodison Park on October 23, 2021 in Liverpool, England. (Photo by Visionhaus/Getty Images) /
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Frank Lampard has confirmed Yerry Mina will miss the trip to Watford as Everton travel south for another massive match tomorrow night while their opponents face an injury crisis of their own.

Mina’s absence is a blow and according to the Everton boss the team may well have to do without the Colombian defender possibly until the final week of the season.

That’s obviously not good news and puts more pressure on the the centre-backs who finished against Leicester City on Sunday, Micheal Keane and Mason Holgate, to perform in these next critical games.

With Ben Godfrey also out for at least another week it’s once again looking a little threadbare in central defence for the Blues.

I really hope all these injuries aren’t going to prove decisive in the end and as we’ve said over and  over again it’s just ridiculous how many times so many of the Toffees’ key players get hurt.

One piece of good news for Everton on the injury front is that Vitalii Mykolenko should be available. And given how superbly he’s been performing recently, that is certainly very positive to hear.

It also looks as though tomorrow night’s opponents are having even more bad luck with player absences at the moment than the Blues’.

According to media reports the Hornets could be without ten players when they line up to face the Toffees’ at Vicarage Road.

One of those probable absences is a player, Josh King, who certainly came back to haunt Everton when he notched a hat-trick in Watford’s 5-2 win at Goodison Park earlier this season.

The former Everton player signed in January 2021 who had been frozen out by Carlo Ancelotti last season, returned for his new team to add his contribution to that humiliating defeat which marked the moment things began to fall apart in this campaign.

The wheels came off that day for the Blues’ in spectacular fashion as the home team collapsed in the second half to a team that was in the bottom three and already fighting what has since proved to be a doomed battle with relegation.

In retrospect, Everton never really recovered from that loss and the season entered a long decline that has ultimately led to the current crisis.

With Watford’s injury problems and the fact they were finally relegated last weekend, it should on paper make tomorrow night’s match a very winnable one for the Toffees’.

But, as we all know this Blues’ team specialises in finding a way to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory and find a way to gift their opponents a chance to win.

Also, in some ways of course the Hornets have had that weight lifted from their shoulders and so tomorrow is a free hit for them.

Everton of course still need points to make sure they won’t be joining Watford in the Championship next season. A win tomorrow would go a long way to easing the pressure on the side with two home games coming up next.

And, after finally thowing that away day monkey off their backs with last Sunday’s win at Leicester, can the Toffees’ possibly make it two wins in a row on the road?