The busy festive period may be over but the pressure only increases from here on in as clubs jockey for position in the second half of the season. That’s certainly the case for Everton who have been below par for much of this campaign, domestically at least. They sit in the bottom half of the table, a huge 15 points behind fourth placed Southampton. Considering they were so close to finishing in the Champions League places for the majority of last season, their current position has been the cause of much frustration amongst their supporters. A visit from the Premier League champions is probably not the game they would have hoped for to begin the new year at Goodison, but they have caused them trouble in the past.
Six weeks ago you would be forgiven for thinking that Manuel Pellegrini would struggle to see out the season after a poor start in the league and Champions League qualification looking unlikely. Fast forward to now and they progressed to the last 16 in Europe and have moved level on points with leaders Chelsea. They’ve managed to do that without several key players, including Sergio Aguero, who was injured the last time these sides met at the beginning of December. He’s now back in training which will only add to the good feeling around the club at the moment.
The Toffees come into this game on a run of four straight defeats in the league. Their last win was a comfortable 3-1 victory over QPR at home but they were not all that convincing then either. An injury time equaliser kept them in the FA Cup on Tuesday night and it could be the type of event which acts as a catalyst to stop their run of defeats.
11 wins from 12 games in all competitions indicates how consistent City have been since the end of November. Their one slip came between Christmas and New Year’s Day when they let a two goal lead slip at home to Burnley. As annoying as that would have been, it can’t detract from their current run of excellent form; one which sets them up perfectly for the rest of the season.
Games between these clubs are usually very competitive and Everton have enjoyed success in the fixture. Before City won towards the end of last season, Everton had won five of their last six against the Manchester club at Goodison. In terms of Saturday’s game, the away side come into it in much better form and I’m struggling to see how Everton can get a result, so side with the away win here.
Manchester City 17/20 @ Bet365
