Game used for reference: Sean Dyche’s entire tenure with Everton
Sean Dyche is probably the most predictable manager in the Premier League, and it speaks volumes to how effective his system is at grabbing results at times.
His time at Everton was defined by simple football. Balls over the top, strong defending, and compactness are still vital to his system.
Looking at personnel, Nottingham Forest do have some interesting pieces that can do some damage to Everton.
Morgan Gibbs-White is always a dangerous matchup, Igor Jesus can always turn a game on its head in attack, and Nikola Milenković has been a steady pretense in Forest’s defense since his arrival in 2024.
If Everton want to win this match, they’ll need to take advantage of the possession that they will be given.
Forest will be more than happy to sit back and hit on the counter, which could be an issue since Everton lack defensive strength in midfield due to injuries and absences.
The left side isn’t defensively superb either thanks to Jack Grealish’s offensive nature. Having Grealish and Iliman Ndiaye tracking back like they did against Manchester United could limit Nottingham Forest to long balls, which could be easily defended by Everton’s tall center backs.
Thierno Barry and Beto are once against tasked with a difficult matchup, and nobody should expect them to have a clear chance on goal. However, when space gets tight, rebounds arise, and it’s possible that Barry or Beto could be at the right place at the right time and tap in an opportunity.
The Toffees have had a decent start to life at Hill Dickinson Stadium, and against a relegation contender that is in an European competition, a win could showcase that the team has in fact taken a step towards being a contender for those European spots rather than settling for mediocrity.