Has everyone caught their breath yet? Personally, I am still in shock. Shocked that we managed to score 3 goals in 45-minutes of football, shocked that we almost threw it away, shocked that we won and shocked that we are still less than 2-weeks into the second reign of David Moyes.
It’s been an Eventful January which has seen the departure of outgoing manager Sean Dyche, the temporary dream team of Baines and Coleman in the Goodison dugout and the permanent nostalgic hit of Moyes returning to the club. Someone should also mention to the club that January is also a transfer window and that we are allowed to buy some players. The window closes next weekend and so far Everton have signed no one and sold no one. Improvements are needed, despite the win last weekend and you have to feel that a window without recruitment will only dampen the emerging positivity that has grown around the club so far this month.
Back on the field, Everton travel away to Brighton, in the reverse fixture from the opening game of the season. All 3 points at home to Spurs last weekend have given the Toffees a 4-point gap between them and the relegation zone and with Ipswich travelling to Liverpool this weekend, perhaps the game on the coast can be played with more freedom and less pressure.
If You Know Your History… Everton v Brighton Through the Years
Goodison Park opened its doors to Brighton on the opening day of what is set to be her final season. Sean Dyche, backed with summer signings, looked to show what a season without a points deduction might look like. Dyche’s side would have finished level on points with Brighton the previous season, were it not for 2 points deduction, so felt they had a point to prove. Despite a lively start it was a game that ended in a heavy home defeat for the blues, Brighton taking all 3 points from us earlier in the season.
Sean Dyche’s biggest win as Everton manager came against Brigton at the Amex, where we romped to a 5-1 victory. Since then it’s been 2 draws and a defeat for the former blues boss against this weekend’s opponents.
The 2 sides have only faced off a total of 26 times since their first meeting back in 1913. Everton have won 11 of these meetings, Brighton have closed the gap in recent years with 7 wins over the toffees and the sides have drawn a total of 8 times.
Fun fact: David Moyes never faced Brighton as Everton manager during his first spell. In fact no Everton manager faced Brighton from the end of 1983 until 2017.
Since Brighton’s arrival in the Premier League back in 2017 they have secured 5 of their 7 wins over Everton. Interestingly Brighton haven’t beaten Everton at the Amex since 2019.
Team News
Dwight McNeil may require surgery on his knee and will be unavailable as he spends further timeout receiving specialist attention. James Garner could feature this weekend, Tim Iroegbunam is back in training but is a doubt for this weekend. Seamus Coleman will travel with the squad but is unavailable for selection.
Brighton remain without Ferdi Kadioglu and Igor. James Milner, Mats Wieffer, Jack Hinshelwood and rumoured Everton target Evan Ferguson are doubts.
What the Manager Says
Moyes on the Transfer Window – “Still pretty hopeful we’ll make additions before the window closes. I don’t want to make promises though. I’ve had my say but the people here have been working on this for the past 3-4 months”.
Moyes on the win over Spurs- “I think the players have done brilliantly well. They want to work, they want to try and get better. Overall I was thrilled with how the team performed and we now need to show consistently.
Moyes on facing Brighton –The test at Brighton is as tough as it comes. This is my first away game [since returning] . I think over the years Everton have been pretty good [away from home]. If we can try and be hard to beat and hard to play against and give ourselves more chances to win a game.
Everton Key Player
James Tarkowski – The Tarky of old shone through during Everton’s win over Tottenham last weekend. For large parts of the game we saw the leadership and strength that has seen the English central defender give to his teams throughout his career. Questions had been asked of Tarkowski towards the end of Dyche’s reign and even against Aston Villa last week. However, he seemed to roll back the years against Spurs and whilst it was far from a defensively solid display he made some critical interceptions and blocks to prevent complete collapse.
A new manager brings with them a new system and it is clear to see that whilst Moyes’ tactical changes are benefitting Everton at the top end of the pitch, they are beginning to leave themselves more open and vulnerable at the back. Tarkowski will be key this weekend as they look to deal with a tricky Brighton side, who have many attacking options. It feels like the days of sitting back and playing for the clean sheet are gone and in that case you will need players like Tarky to do what he did against Spurs and simply limit the chances and stop the main threats from having a clear sight at goal. And who knows, with new set-piece coach Charlie Adam coming over to the blue side of Stanley Park, Tarkowski might end up contributing more at the other end too.
One to Watch for Brighton:
Kaoru Mitoma – The Japanese international seemed to take to the Premier League like a duck to water when he debuted for Brighton back in 2022/23 but seems to have gone under the radar for those not following the Seagulls every week. Recent records show the forward may have found his feet again at the beginning of 2025, with two goals in his last two Premier League games against Ipswich and Man Utd. A side with many attacking options Mitoma will give the Everton fullbacks (and their new high line) a lot to think about at the weekend.
Final Thoughts
The first away game for David Moyes since returning to Everton comes against a well drilled and well run Brighton. The oldest manager in the Premier League travels to face the youngest, with over 30-years separating the two. Off the pitch, Brighton have the structure and resources Evertonians have long since craved and wished for our own club. The return of Moyes and the impending departure to pastures new in Bramley Moore might convince some fans that blue skies are on the horizon. The returning Everton manager has made it quite clear that whilst that is on the cards for the future, in the here and now there is work to be done. Back-to-back wins is something Everton have gone a while without and with some ‘must-win games’ coming up for Everton, David Moyes will do well to capitalise on any confidence generated from last weekend’s win.
Prediction
2-1. I’ve decided to lean fully into optimism in 2025. No doubt it will be a tough away day this weekend against a Brighton side that have just put Man Utd to the sword, but I think the confidence will continue to grow for Moyes’ Everton this weekend. Keeping clean-sheets won’t be the immediate concern for the boss but continuing to score goals will be. I fancy a 2-1 Everton win on the road with DCL to get another goal (or two).
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