Preview: Everton v Hull City – Toffees aim to return to winning ways

Everton – Hull City

Date: Saturday 19th October

Venue: Goodison Park

KO: 15:00

After losing 3-2 to Manchester City in the last round, a game that also saw them lose their unbeaten record, Roberto Martinez will be hoping his Everton side can return to winning ways at home to newly-promoted Hull City. Steve Bruce, meanwhile, will be hoping to make it five league games unbeaten after drawing 0-0 at home to Aston Villa in their last fixture.

Team News:

Everton

The Toffees will be without Darron Gibson for several months after he suffered a serious knee injury on international duty. Steven Pienaar is close to full fitness, but remains a doubt. Antolin Alcaraz, meanwhile, remains sidelined.

Hull City

Winger Robbie Brady, Hull’s top scorer so far this campaign, centre-back James Chester, and central midfielder Robert Koren are all out because of injury.

Recent Form:

Everton are growing under Martinez. The Spaniard has overseen two victories out the three home games played thus far as his side sit in seventh place, making it eight of their last nine home matches won in a run dating back to last season when David Moyes was the manager. With such a decent home record, Martinez will be confident of another victory, especially since the opposition is a newly-promoted side.

Bruce’s men, meanwhile, have lost two of their three away matches played so far. On the bright side, they won the last one–a thrilling 3-2 come-from-behind effort at St. James’ Park against Newcastle United. As was mentioned, they are unbeaten in their last four matches overall, which is a decent run to have so early in the season as a promoted side. That said, the Tigers will be in good spirits heading into this game.

Players to Watch:

Everton - Romelu Lukaku

The 20-year-old Belgian has started the season in fine form, netting four goals in his three appearances, which is the league’s third-best tally so far. He is a powerhouse of a striker and quite the worker, ever willing to roam the field in search of space so he can pick up the ball and drive forward into the penalty area.

Despite his size and height of 1.9 metres, he is very quick and can dribble past his opponents, attempting an average of close to six take-on’s per game so far, completing 47% of them, which is good. Curtis Davies and Abdoulaye Faye will surely have their hands full with him. But they may have the beating of him in the air, though, as Lukaku has won just 31% of his headed duels, which is disappointing considering his height and strength. Still, expect an energetic, committed performance from the youngster.

Hull City - Tom Huddlestone

The former Tottenham Hotspur man needed to change clubs in order to get his stuttering career back on track. A move to Hull City has worked out well thus far, helping him earn 112 points, according to Squawka’s Performance Score rating. He is the club’s chief creator, sitting deep in midfield pulling the strings.

Attempting an average of 7.6 long passes per game, completing 25% of his through balls, and taking up set piece responsibilities, he has created nine chances in his seven appearances to date, which is the most of any Hull City player. He is the one that will be providing the ammunition for the likes of Sone Aluko and Danny Graham/Yannick Sagbo up top.

His defensive contribution will also be key. Averaging five defensive actions per game so far, he has made an average of 1.7 interceptions and is attempting 2.6 tackles per game. Against a side that likes to retain possession, that kind of defensive effort will be crucial.

Prediction

The Tigers will scrap to the best of their ability, but this should be another home win for this talented Everton side. Leighton Baines and Seamus Coleman will prove very threatening going forward from their full-back positions, while the likes of Ross Barkley, Kevin Mirallas, and Romelu Lukaku should link up very effectively in and around the penalty area. They should prove too much for Hull’s defence.

Everton 3-1 Hull City