Toffees Return From UAE Training Camp to Face Wolves

After the 1-1 draw against Brentford, David Moyes took his team to a mid-season warm weather training camp in the United Arab Emirates to prepare the squad for a tough run throughout the month of April. Whilst the Toffees have been abroad, decisions have been made by the Friedkin Group regarding the structure and hierarchy of the club.

For starters, Angus Kinnear, current Leeds United CEO, serving the Peacocks since 2017, will join Everton for the next domestic campaign. Under Kinnear's leadership, Leeds United were resilient. From 9th place in the Premier League to play-off final defeats, the majority of this would come down to the manager; however, the talent Kinnear has managed to sell to top clubs has been sublime during his time at Leeds, the most notable being Raphinha to Barcelona for £55m, Kalvin Phillips to Manchester City for £45m, Georginio Rutter to Brighton for £30m, and Crysencio Summerville for £25m.

As well as this, Colin Chong will continue to lead the regeneration process around both Bramley Moore-Dock and Goodison Park, as the possibility of keeping the stadium in the state it is currently in to occupy both women and academy matches arose this week. Richard Kenyon, who is Chief Commercial and Communications Officer, will leave the club. Finally, the Blyes have confirmed that Director of Football Kevin Thelwell, who has been at the club since 2022, will leave at the end of this season, when his contract expires. Thelwell has, in fairness, done a good job in tough times, with a limited budget, bringing in some decent signings such as Iliman Ndiaye, James Tarkowski, and Dwight McNeil, key players in David Moyes' setup. Another player who had proven his worth whilst Kevin Thelwell was at the club was Abdoulaye Doucouré, who is coming to the end, like many players, of his contract at the club, and it has been reported that the 1-year extension will not be going ahead, whether the club will attempt to renegotiate a deal or not, but it is clear signs the Friedkin Group is taking clear charge.

However, currently, both Ndiaye and McNeil are injured, with David Moyes stating in his pre-match press conference that they are further away from the likes of Seamus Coleman and Armando Broja, who went down injured during the FA Cup victory against Peterborough and suffered crucial ligament damage in his ankle, forcing him to be out for an extended number of weeks. Although under a scarce number of players, David Moyes' recent turnaround in form getting Everton out of a relegation battle has been impressive, and there is a giant opportunity to further this against Wolverhampton Wanderers, sitting one place under the Toffees, in 17th, but 10 points below.

---

Everton Recent Form (Premier League):

Everton 1-1 Brentford

Everton 2-2 Manchester United

Crystal Palace 1-2 Everton

Everton 2-2 Liverpool

Everton 4-0 Leicester

Brighton 0-1 Everton

Everton 3-2 Spurs

---

Everton will also be given a helping hand by their opposition at the Molineux Stadium on Saturday night, as top scorer Mattheus Cunha was handed a three-match suspension after attempting to slap and headbutt Bournemouth defender Milos Kerkez in the final moments of extra time in a feisty FA Cup clash ending with the Cherries winning on sudden death penalties!

In Wolves manager Vitor Pereira's pre-match press conference, he discussed Everton and the situation regarding Cunha, claiming that “They (Everton) were doing fantastic work in the last month. But my focus is my team because it's the only thing that I can control. We will go to face them, a good team; they were competing with every team in the last games. We need to play our game and to correct some behaviours from the last game that we lost. We need to recover as soon as possible, to be ourselves, to play as Wolves," with the Portuguese man also adding that, “I'm very confident for the future, with Cunha or without Cunha, because I know my players, I know the personalities, I know the soul of them. They will give us a strong response in this game, for sure.”

Wolves' recent form is mixed, beating Aston Villa and Bournemouth throughout the month of February but also being beaten by Fulham. Perreira has done well to guide his team through a reasonably tough month, although being beaten by Arsenal and top of the league Liverpool, it was more than likely expected knowing their position in the league table this Premier League campaign.

---

Premier League Gameweek 28:

Saturday 9th March:

Nottingham Forest 12:30 Manchester City

Brighton & Hove Albion 15:00 Fulham

Crystal Palace 15:00 Ipswich Town

Liverpool 15:00 Southampton

Brentford 17:30 Aston Villa

Wolverhampton Wanderers 20:00 Everton

Sunday 10th March:

Chelsea 14:00 Leicester City

Tottenham Hotspur 14:00 Bournemouth

Manchester United 16:30 Arsenal

Monday 11th March:

West Ham United 20:00 Newcastle United

---

Thank you for reading my pre-match article!