da cassino： Sam Allardyce’s Everton come into the an FA Cup tie at Anfield on Friday evening on a fairly dismal run of no wins in four.
da winzada777： When the one-time England boss came into the Everton hotseat, he seemed to have turned things around for the Toffees: his side were unbeaten in the first eight games since his announcement as the new boss, and had conceded just two goals in that time. Since then, they’ve conceded two goals in each of their last two games.
That downturn was perhaps inevitable, of course. Not only has it come at the end of the gruelling festive period, but it also shows that there’s a lot of work to do to get the side up to the levels required for a team with top six ambitions at some point in the not-too-distant future. At this stage, seventh place still seems like a possible goal, and thanks to a good start, Allardyce will no longer fear a relegation scrap.
But a terrible start under Ronald Koeman and David Unsworth mean that there’s really only one thing left for Everton to play for this year and that’s the FA Cup. And so all the Everton focus will surely be on Anfield on Friday night as they look to progress to the fourth round, knocking out their bitter city rivals in the process.
Here’s a look at what needs to happen in order to achieve that goal:
Big performance – Idrissa Gueye
If both teams line up at full strength (something which shouldn’t be taken for granted in an FA Cup third round tie, even though this is a derby) then it’s a fairly no-brainer that Everton’s suddenly-leaky defence will have to be back to its early-December levels of solidity.
Rested against Manchester United on New Year’s Day, Idrissa Gueye will likely be key to that.
Liverpool’s attack is one of the best in the country, and has given better defences than Everton’s the run-around so far this season. It will be up to Gueye to protect them and prove why he’s a defensive midfielder who is often mentioned in the same breath as Chelsea’s N’Golo Kante.
His ability to win the ball back and stop Mohamed Salah and co. from getting into their rhythm will be vital for Everton’s chances of progression.
Best Formation – 4-3-3
Sam Allardyce has yet to settle on a formation he feels comfortable with as Everton boss it seems, as he’s played with various back-three formations over the Christmas period as well as playing with a 4-4-2 against Liverpool in the Anfield draw in early December.
Two banks of four sounds like a fairly standard-issue Allardyce tactic against a side like Liverpool, but the last two league games, against Bournemouth and United, have seen the Toffees line up in something of a 4-3-3 formation. That might be the route they take against Liverpool on Friday night.
The fact that they lost both of those games over the new year might suggest that the back three formations have worked better, but the other explanation is that Allardyce – one of the most meticulous managers in the league – has been testing out the system in league games he may well care less about than an FA Cup tie which might present his club with their only chance at glory this season.
With that in mind, a formation which allows Gueye to anchor the midfield with two men alongside him to help out might offer a defensive solidity whilst also giving the likes of Gylfi Sigurdsson and the returning Yannick Bolasie the chance to wreak havoc on the counter-attack.
Most likely goal threat – Bravery
That counter-attacking potency will be the key for Everton to progress, you feel. There’s nothing like a cup tie to produce open counters and that can be thrilling, but there’s always a worry that such a scenario would play right into Liverpool’s hands.
Worrying too much about that would be a mistake, though. We know that Jurgen Klopp’s side are weakest at the back, and even if the arrival of Virgil van Dijk does shore up their defence, it’s unlikely to happen overnight. As such, it could be Everton’s bravery on the counter-attack which will be the difference between progression and elimination.
If they can hit Liverpool where it hurts whilst also protecting their defence, Everton have a good chance of progression and their motivation for the cup will grow.