Everton vs Manchester City: Premier League latest score, goals and updates from Goodison Park
EVERTON 0-0 MANCHESTER CITY
Everton XI: Pickford, Kenny, Zouma, Keane, Digne, Gueye, Davies, Gomes, Walcott, Calvert-Lewin, Bernard
Manchester City XI: Ederson, Walker, Stones, Otamendi, Laporte, Gundogan, Fernandinho, David Silva, Bernardo Silva, Sergio Aguero, Leroy Sane
- Everton make five changes, Raheem Sterling dropped for Manchester City
EVERTON 0-0 MANCHESTER CITY
10: Well we’ve reached the ten-minute mark and Everton are holding firm. Ilkay Gundogan is fouled by an over-eager captain Tom Davies but gifts the ball back to the Toffees when trying a sneaky quick free-kick.
7: Quite a flat atmosphere inside the stadium tonight. Perhaps that’s a response to the whole Liverpool title challenge, or, more likely, Everton’s dismal form. Quite a few calling for Marco Silva to leave the club and have voted with their feet tonight.
4: Normal service is resumed as a corner drifts out to Leroy Sane, who thwacks it sweetly wide on the half-volley. Lovely hit a few inches wide of the target.
Everton aren’t pressing much with virtually everyone behind the ball. Soaking up the pressure and hitting City on the counter is the order of the evening for Marco Silva’s men.
2: Lightning start… for Everton! Theo Walcott does some good work down the right flank before sending it into the penalty area. Fernandinho takes a tumble and Andre Gomes is prevented from pulling the trigger.
EVERTON 0-0 MANCHESTER CITY
1: And we’re off! Huge night of Premier League action is about to unfold at Goodison Park. Quite a big night of Fantasy Football action too now I think about it…
Five minute warning
19:40: Just a few minutes to go until kick off, folks. I’ll now be accepting predictions. Sorry Liverpool supporters, but I’m expecting a routine 3-0 victory for the visitors.
I reserve the right to delete this later if I’m completely wrong…
Everton vs Manchester City: Premier League latest score, goals and updates from Goodison Park (Image: REUTERS)
Elsewhere…
19:35: There are a few other games taking place tonight. The most notable of the remaining two is the Copa Del Rey semi-final first leg clash between Barcelona and Real Madrid.
That’s not to diminish the importance of West Brom vs Brighton in the FA Cup… which is the only possible option for UK television viewers.
Good luck with that.
Twitter round-up
Steve: Everton field weakened side against Manchester City?? Looks like the whole of England’s top flight are anti-Liverpool winning the league….Man City by 5…!!
Matt: All these people saying Everton have dropped there best players for this game obviously haven’t been watching Everton week in week out. Sigurdsson has been poor and provides no pace in the midfield and Coleman hasn’t been the same since breaking his leg
Gaz: Everton v Man City and Barcelona v Madrid is on tonight and I have to settle for West Brom vs Brighton. Tragic.
Everton vs Manchester City: Premier League latest score, goals and updates from Goodison Park (Image: BETTINGEXPERT)
Wednesday woes…
19:25: Now this… this is special.
I suspect a hopeful Liverpool fan in the Bettingexpert offices has conjured up these statistics about City’s Wednesday woes..
Bettingexpert have conducted a study to find that Wednesday is the defending champions’ least successful day of the week, averaging just 2.2 points per game, compared to a weekly best of 2.71 on a Monday.
City’s opposition tonight, Everton, have a higher Wednesday return of 2.33 points per game – their most successful day of the week – while the study also sheds light on Liverpool’s Monday night slip-up.
‘I have to change something’
19:20: Does ‘I have to change something’ sound a bit desperate? Doesn’t sound enormously convincing to me, but see what you think of Marco Silva’s pre-match interview.
“I have to change something, not just because we were not happy against Wolves. We have two games in four days,” Silva said.
“We expect that City will have more possession and you have to be solid and compact. I expect nothing more than usual from Idrissa Gueye. He has that quality which means that Paris St-Germain came in for him. I expect that from him, that level.”
Everton vs Manchester City: Premier League latest score, goals and updates from Goodison Park (Image: REUTERS)
Pressure on Marco Silva
19:15: Everton’s form has plummeted after their promising start under new manager Marco Silva, with the Portuguese boss accepting questions may now be being asked of his position.
The team were booed off after Saturday’s 3-1 loss to Wolves, their eighth defeat in their last 14 games in all competitions.
Silva is being criticised for his team’s lack of structure and direction, and their inability to defend set-pieces – a problem which also blighted the same manager at Hull and Watford – has been highlighted. A heavy defeat would increase the pressure.
Scheduling and City’s Goodison woes
19:10: This game was originally scheduled to be played on February 23 but was brought forward due to City’s involvement in the Carabao Cup final.
There have been suggestions neither club were happy with the new date.
It has certainly made it a testing week for City, with another tough clash against Chelsea at the weekend.
City have largely had the measure of Everton in recent times, putting behind them what was a poor record during Roberto Mancini’s spell as manager, but Pep Guardiola will not want reminding of his visit to Goodison in January 2017.
City were thrashed 4-0 on that occasion – a low point of Guardiola’s reign.
Everton vs Manchester City: Premier League latest score, goals and updates from Goodison Park (Image: REUTERS)
Pep ready…
19:05: Pep Guardiola has already taken his seat on the visitors’ bench. No idea why with 45 minutes until kick off. He looks absolutely freezing in the thick cardigan/coat/jacket thing he’s wearing…
Twitter round-up
Can: Have enormous respect for Marco Silva. A terrible manager but he’s left his best players on the bench against Man City meaning Liverpool are likely to finish the day off top spot. Top class s***housery.
Ann: Richarlison benched tonight!? Well looks like Marco Silva definitely doesn’t want Liverpool to win the Premier League!
Tommy: No Richarlison or Sigurdsson. Almost as if Everton are doing what their fans wanted and intentionally losing this game just to stop Liverpool winning the league…
Sean: Tom Davies being captain against Manchester City tonight is the most Scouse thing ever!
Everton vs Manchester City: Premier League latest score, goals and updates from Goodison Park (Image: REUTERS)
Sterling and KDB dropped
18:55: Pep Guardiola has also tinkered with his side… but it’s still darn strong.
My fantasy football captain Kevin De Bruyne and Raheem Sterling drop to the bench (thanks Pep) with John Stones and Leroy Sane returning.
Sergio Aguero continues in attack after his hat-trick against Arsenal.
Ah…
18:50: Well… Everton make five changes to the side beaten by Wolves on Saturday and I suspect Liverpool fans will be extremely unhappy about Marco Silva’s selection.
He’s made FIVE changes with Richarlison, Gylfi Sigurdsson and Seamus Coleman dropping to the bench.
Idrissa Gueye, Jonjoe Kenny and Lucas Digne return to the starting XI. Tom Davies captains the side.
Everton vs Manchester City: Premier League latest score, goals and updates from Goodison Park (Image: GETTY)
The line-ups…
18:45: And here are the teams for tonight’s crucial untelevised clash. Sorry to keep banging on about it but surely either BT Sport or Sky Sports should be showing such an important game.
Everton XI: Pickford, Kenny, Zouma, Keane, Digne, Gueye, Davies, Gomes, Walcott, Calvert-Lewin, Bernard.
Subs: Stelekenburg, Coleman, McCarthy, Schneiderlin, Sigurdsson, Richarlison, Tosun.
Manchester City XI: Ederson, Walker, Stones, Otamendi, Laporte, Gundogan, Fernandinho, David Silva, Bernardo Silva, Sergio Aguero, Leroy Sane.
Subs: Muric, Danilo, Zinchenko, Sterling, De Bruyne, Mahrez, Jesus.
City have chance to go top
18:40: With leaders Liverpool drawing their last two matches, City are back on the tails of the Premier League leaders.
Victory in this rearranged fixture at Goodison Park will take the champions back to the top of the table.
The advantage would only be goal difference and City would have played a game more, but it would nevertheless make a statement at a time when Liverpool are wobbling.
Welcome home… me
18:35: Go on, you can say it. You’ve missed me…
I’ve just returned from a two-week holiday in the Philippines. It sounds like paradise but sun stroke on the first afternoon followed by a strange virus towards the finale wasn’t very fun.
*Tiny, tiny violin plays in the background*
Anyway, I’m back now so you don’t have to endure my colleagues any longer… I, unfortunately, do.
Everton vs Manchester City: Premier League latest score, goals and updates from Goodison Park (Image: GETTY)
Evening…
18:30: Hello everyone and welcome to our LIVE coverage of the Premier League.
It’s one of those weird and wonderful nights in the title race when club allegiance is set aside and complete mayhem ensues.
Liverpool fans want an Everton win, Everton fans want a Manchester City win and Manchester United fans want… well who knows what those guys want.
And to cap it all off – the match isn’t being shown on live television anywhere in the UK. Smart stuff.
But it matters not, I will be with you all evening to provide the latest team news, updates and perhaps some witty(ish) banter from Goodison Park.
Let’s get started!
Everton vs Manchester City: Premier League latest score, goals and updates from Goodison Park (Image: REUTERS)
Everton vs Manchester City – Early team news
Everton midfielder Idrissa Gana Gueye returns from a groin injury for the visit of Manchester City after missing the last two matches.
The Senegal international, who saw a deadline-day bid from Paris St Germain rejected, is likely to go straight back into the side, which will miss defenders Phil Jagielka (knock) and Yerry Mina (foot).
Leighton Baines (rib) is likely to miss out but first-choice left-back Lucas Digne returns from suspension.
Manchester City are still without captain Vincent Kompany.
The Belgium defender has been out for the last month with a muscular problem and there is no timescale on his return.
Goalkeeper Claudio Bravo (Achilles) is a long-term casualty and left-back Benjamin Mendy is being eased back after knee surgery but City otherwise have a fully-fit squad.