It’s that time again, the Anthony Gordon derby! The boys in blue prepare to take on Newcastle on Thursday the 7th of December which will be the first of two matches within the week. Do we have what it takes to actually win at home against this Newcastle side? a side without Nick Pope.
Everton rewind
Everton made their way to West Bridgford to take on a struggling Nottingham Forest. The lineup would be noticeably different than usual, Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Amadou Onana both missing out due to nagging injuries
Everton would start the stronger of the two early on but the game would shift into a match where neither side wanted to string more than three or four passes together. We missed a few opportunities through Beto not being able to place a somewhat simple shot and McNeil having a shot cleared off the line by Murillo. The first half would end level.
The second half would be a slightly different story! Everton would finish with 54% possession in the second half. Through sheer will and determination, we would break the deadlock via a fantastic finish by McSteel (McNeil). He would put us up 1-0 in the 67th minute and from that moment on we would somewhat park the bus.
We sat back and absorbed what Forest had to offer, which was not much. Forest were pretty lame in the attack up until the last 10 minutes or so. Tarkowski and Pickford would see out the remaining 10 minutes with pure dominance! Tarkowski could not be beaten in the air, looking like he was launched out of a cannon at times. He and Branthwaite would become an impenetrable wall and kept us a clean sheet and earned us a wonderful three points.
Newcastle Vs Manchester United recap
This game was a one way street for the entirety of the match. Newcastle dominated for the entire 90 minutes and were relentless to say the least. It took Newcastle an extremely long 55 minutes to score, Snake Gordon would be the lone goal scorer.
Newcastle had 58% possession and would muster 22 shots, keeping United on the backfoot. United wouldn’t threaten Newcastle’s goal on the day and would end up with a 0.48 xG while Newcastle ended with a full 2.50 xG.
United, who slapped us around in a 3-0 win would look like a ghost of a team that came to Goodison, there is something wrong in the Manchester United camp and Newcastle exposed them for who they are.
Everton Key Player
Idrissa Gana-Gueye has been so instrumental to the team for the last few matches but it has flown under the radar for many. Gana playing tight with Garner in the midfield was key to our win over Forest, it allowed them to play in a compact manner forcing Forest to play the wings and mainly through Elanga.
Gana who averages six ground duels won per 90 and three tackles uses those moments to progress the ball very fast during transition. In transition Gana joins the attack and he has also delivered eight key passes into the final third so far this season. Gana also has a very high dribble rate, 89%. He is calm and usually makes the right decision, a very important factor in a two man midfield. Onana may be back for this match but regardless… Gana is a cornerstone to this particular midfield.
Newcastle key Player
Kieran Trippier is tied at the top of the Premier League in assists with 7, he may be the best RB in the league right now going forward. Trippier is having an all around great season and I would not expect that to change versus Everton.
Trippier is a creator from his right side, he totals five shot-creating actions per game, which is in the 99th percentile of the entire league amongst fullbacks. Trippier is also in the 99th percentile for another category, progressive passes. He is integral to how Newcastle plays, the prefer to play down the right hand side and have totaled a majority of their goals from creating down that side.
Trippier isn’t anything special defensively… he is in the 50th percentile for tackles,duels, aerial duels and even interceptions. He is no lockdown player and I’m sure McNeil will not be troubled by him, but on the other hand defending him (Trippier) will be difficult.
Final thoughts!
Newcastle only has one away win all season.. but we only have one win at home… So I’m sure we will see a wide open game and hopefully their terrible away form will continue at Goodison. Even with it being a Thursday night game, Goodison will be bouncing and making it as difficult as possible for Newcastle and Anthony Gordon.
It is a home match but any result against a quality side like Newcastle is a good result. UTFT
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