Everton’s Away Form Sets Standpoint Ahead of Newcastle Clash

Everton make the long trip to the Northeast to face Newcastle United in a game where the Blues will be hoping the current away form sees them through.

The summarised critique of the Toffee’s opening season at Hill Dickinson Stadium is no doubt the situation unfolding regarding the home form. Since Moyes’ side first stepped on the turf of the new ground, Everton have managed to win 4/14 games.

The opportunity to potentially revitalise some form was ever present last time out, as Manchester United were the visitors. Unfortunately, despite the hard-fought efforts on display, Michael Carrick’s professionalism overcame the Toffees, as the Red Devils travelled back to M16 with three points in their pocket following a narrow 1-0 win.

Benjamin Šeško's counterattacking goal left the boys in blue in despair, and although the end result was disappointing, you couldn’t knock the work ethic, as the Everton players exited the field of play to a collective applause from the fans within the stadium.

The starting lineup laid out by Moyes for the clash was quite unusual, as Jarrad Branthwaite was situated at left back and Harrison Armstrong employed as a left winger, meaning the whole left flank were inexperienced in their positions. Although now Jake O’Brien is back from a one-match suspension, there is room to experiment. With the likes of Tyrique George and Tyler Dibling being young and willing, Moyes has plenty of choice now, for the first time in a long time.

In the pre-match press conference, David Moyes revealed the reasoning for Carlos Alcaraz’s absence last time out, stating, “Alcaraz has got an injury which is probably going to keep him out for three or four weeks, we think.

He picked up in the last minute in training on Sunday, so he was a bit unfortunate; he probably would have started on Monday night if he hadn't picked up the injury."

Jack Grealish remains sidelined.

For the Toons, Eddie Howe has revealed that Newcastle will be without Emil Krafth, Bruno Guimaraes, Fabian Schar, Tino Livramento and Lewis Miley for the clash, and Jacob Ramsey faces a late fitness check in regard to a hamstring issue.

Fixture contention has been an issue for the Geordies as of late, as competing in the Champions League and progressing into the latter rounds of the FA Cup puts a lot of pressure on the players.

So far in February, Newcastle have played 7 games; that’s 1 every 4 days. Taking into account travel, especially in UEFA competitions, and typical fixture timings, one a week, you can see where injuries are stemming from. This isn’t just an issue for Newcastle but for the majority of clubs playing in additional competitions as well.

At the moment the Toffees don’t play in European competitions and have been knocked out of the FA and Carabao Cups, so this situation doesn’t apply. The overall goal that has been voiced from players and the manager specifically is to compete like the top-level clubs.

There is concern the current squad depth wouldn’t be sufficient enough to compete, which is understandable, with frequently the Toffees being forced to place two goalkeepers and too many academy players on the bench. With the season gradually coming to an end, there is no doubt there will be work going on behind the scenes to push for a higher finish than what will ultimately come about this season!

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Thank you for reading my pre-match article!