Everton play host to West Ham tomorrow at Goodison Park in Liverpool as both teams try to get to or stay in the qualifying spots for any of the European competitions.
The English Premier League comes back today after a long international break, and it comes back with all of the top teams battling for the No. 1 spot. Tomorrow won’t be any less exciting though, as Everton will fight West Ham for a place in the top 5, and Spurs will meet Newcastle United.
Everton manager Rafael Benítez was not welcomed with too much fanfare by the Everton fans at the beginning of the season when the Spaniard got hired. No wonder, he coached Everton’s biggest rivals, Liverpool, from 2004 to 2010! But after a couple of solid performances and working his team way up into the top 5 it looks like he settled well, and the fans are ready to accept the new order of things.
In their last match, they drew 1-1 with Manchester United at Old Trafford, which is no easy feat, and they could have even gotten all 3 points if Yerry Mina’s goal in the 85th minute wasn’t waved off because of an offside. They now sit in 5th position with 14 points, but both Manchester squads and Brighton also stand on 14.
West Ham occupy 9th spot with 11 points. Their last game came two weeks ago against Brentford and West Ham lost at home 1-2 after a lovely injury time strike from Yoane Wissa. This was their second loss of the season. The first one came from the feet of Manchester United, also at West Ham’s home ground. They are still rock-solid when playing away from home though, which should be a concern for Everton.
The Toffees’ best offensive player this season is surprisingly 30-year-old winger Andros Townsend who joined the team in July on a free transfer. He already scored 5 goals and assisted on 3 more this season in the EPL and in the cup competitions. He even claimed an award for the best goal of September with his long-distance screamer against Burnley! And with Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Richarlison both out of the match because of injuries, he should be the one to carry his team offensively.
The Hammers also have a lot of offensive talent on their squad, mainly Michail Antonio, who boasts even more impressive stats than the above-mentioned Everton star!
The teams are fighting for a lot and we expect a close match, most likely leading to a 1-1 draw.
