Everton at Newcastle: Writer Prediction League

Whisper it softly so the vengeful gods of football don’t hear you, but... “there’s reason to feel a little optimistic about Everton Football Club since it returned from its two-week hiatus.”

Last weekend’s 0-0 draw against title-contending Liverpool felt suspiciously like a win, before which Everton picked up a good, if not slightly-less-impressive-than-the-scoreline-indicated 3-0 victory over Cardiff City. The path to seventh place is still a long and arduous one from where things currently stand — but it’s at least a visible path once again, even if you have to squint a little to see it.

Up next for the Toffees is a trip to play Newcastle United at St. James’s Park. Rafa Benitez’s side has done well to stay out of the relegation fracas for most of the season, especially given the club’s (well, Mike Ashley’s) reluctance to spend in the transfer market.

But before we take a look at that match though, let’s relive the Merseyside Derby draw that kept Liverpool in second place in the Premier League.

No one predicted a 0-0 draw, which significantly limited the number of points available to our writers this week. Brian F. and Sean picked the right balance of optimism and realism, and were the only writers to successfully predict a draw.

Unsurprisingly, no one predicted Michael Keane would be man of the match — though the English defender was plenty deserving of the prize.

With so few points picked up last week, there wasn’t a ton of movement in the prediction league standings.

There’s a slightly better chance of movement in the table this week though, when Everton takes on Newcastle. Our picks for that match are below.

No one predicted a Newcastle victory, but a (slim) majority does have the match ending in a draw, with five of those seven writers predicting a 1-1 scoreline. The rest have an Everton victory, three of whom foresee a 1-0 final.

Gylfi Sigurdsson and Richarlison are favored to open the scoring. Calvin and Sean are the only writers to have Newcastle opening the scoring — with both picking Salomon Rondon. Given the striker’s size and Everton’s struggles in defending set pieces, that could wind up being a smart choice.