Premier League 2018-19: 5 talking points from gameweek 11 

#2 Everton may be the surprise team of the season

Everton FC v Brighton & Hove Albion - Premier League

After spending heavily on player recruitment at the start of last season, The Toffees were expected to mount a serious challenge for the top places, but the season started off poorly, as they struggled for form in the league and were shockingly knocked out of a relatively straightforward group.

The result was that manager Ronald Koeman was relieved of his duties, and the club was rebuffed in their attempt to get Marco Silva as Watford held firm in their resolve to keep the Spaniard at the helm in the Vicarage Road.

Results deteriorated at Watford, which led to the termination of Silva’s appointment at the club, and reference was made to Everton’s unethical approach as a reason for the club’s decline.

Everton finally got their man this season, and thus far, he has proved to be worth, as the club has been on a steady improvement since then.

They posted a 3-1 victory over Brighton at Goodison Park over the weekend, which lifted them up to ninth place, just two points away from Bournemouth in sixth and was their fifth win of the campaign so far.

The sheer difference in finances and player quality between the big six at the top hierarchy of the Premier League and the rest of the league is so vast that breaking into the European spots might be virtually impossible, but with what we have seen so far, Everton could just end up being the best of the rest.