Everton vs West Brom: Projected XI | Same again for Ancelotti?

While predicting Everton’s line up for Salford City in midweek was a complete shot in the dark, it would be very surprising indeed if Carlo Ancelotti made any changes to last week’s win over Tottenham Hotspur when West Bromwich Albion visit Goodison Park tomorrow.

Carlo surprised many when he named all three new signings in the starting line-up, but his bravery was rewarded with one of the best and most confident Everton performances in a very, very long time.

Jarrad Branthwaite joins Mason Holgate on the injury list, with Cenk Tosun and Jean-Philippe Gbamin long-term absentees. Fabian Delph and Alex Iwobi have not been spotted earlier in training, with Delph supposedly still recovering from injury while Ancelotti said earlier today that the Nigerian forward is eligible for selection this weekend.

Tactics and Formation

The Blues will almost certainly be lining up in their shiny new 4-3-3 setup, with Allan sitting deep to provide licence for Andre Gomes and Abdoulaye Doucoure to push forward. The back four picks itself at the moment, while Richarlison, Dominic Calvert-Lewin and the messiah himself, James Rodriguez, will lead the line.

Starters (likelihood of starting rated out of 10)

Jordan Pickford – 10/10

Seamus Coleman – 10/10

A confirmed starter on what will be his 250^th top flight appearance.

Lucas Digne – 10/10

Michael Keane – 10/10

Yerry Mina - 10/10

Abdoulaye Doucoure – 10/10

Allan – 10/10

Andre Gomes – 9/10

Outside chance that Gylfi Sigurdsson could keep his place after a solid showing against Salford, but more likely that Ancelotti will spring for the fresher legs of the Portuguese midfielder.

Richarlison – 10/10

James Rodriguez – 10/10

Dominic Calvert-Lewin – 10/10

Bench

Joao Virginia

Jonjoe Kenny – Although Niels Nkounkou may oust him given the excellent performance the young French left-back put in during midweek.

Lewis Gibson – Was surprising that he didn’t make the bench against Salford, but with both Holgate and Branthwaite out, Gibson will surely be called into the squad for this one, unless a loan move away has already been agreed.

Tom Davies

Gylfi Sigurdsson

Anthony Gordon – After being a surprise omission from the squad on the opening day, his performance on Wednesday surely warrants him a spot on the bench here. Theo Walcott and the missing Alex Iwobi could also feature, though.

Moise Kean