Everton at Arsenal: Match Preview

The mauling by Manchester United may lead some to dread this encounter, but there are reasons to believe that the Toffees can come away with something from the Emirates on Saturday.

With Arsenal possibly drained from a massive result mid-week, not being in Europe could be a big advantage this weekend...

The Opposition

A fine counter-attacking performance from the Gunners saw them beat Bayern Munich on Tuesday, but it did come at a cost. Aaron Ramsey picked up a hamstring injury in the Champions League game, and is ruled out for the next three weeks.

David Ospina, Mikel Arteta, Jack Wilshere, Tomas Rosicky, and Danny Welbeck are also unavailable for Arsene Wenger. The form of players such as Olivier Giroud and Mesut Ozil does mean that the North Londoners are unlikely to miss them much though, and they will extra motivated to catch up with a faltering Manchester City at the top of the table.

Team News

For Everton, there is little to worry about on the injury front. With the return of Seamus Coleman and John Stones last week meaning that the back four is now only waiting for Leighton Baines to get fit.

Tom Cleverley could also return to the fold after playing an Under 21s game mid-week, but it is too early for Steven Pienaar. An almost full squad means that Roberto Martinez will have plenty of options to choose from.

The Final Word

On paper this match is alongside the Manchester City encounter as one of the toughest of the season. As such, it is likely that Martinez will again put out a counter-attacking XI.

Despite the defeat last week, it is likely to be a similar line-up. One of the only areas that may change is the front three, where Kevin Mirallas, Arouna Kone, and Gerard Deulofeu will all be feeling they can get in ahead of Aaron Lennon and Steven Naismith.

Everton expected line-up: Howard, Coleman, Galloway, Jagielka, Stones, Barry, McCarthy, Barkley, Mirallas, Kone, Lukaku.