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Everton vs Arsenal

Match Preview

Everton host top-five opposition at Goodison Park again this Wednesday with the visit of Arsenal who have recovered from their early-season jitters and are pressing on the heels of neighbours Tottenham for third place in the Premier League.

Arsene Wenger's men may have been dumped out of the Champions League at the hands of AC Milan last week but they come to Merseyside on a run of five straight League victories that have propelled them back into the top four, fueled by Robin van Persie's scintillating scoring form.

The Blues, meanwhile, can leapfrog Saturday's opponents, Swansea City, into eighth place if they can record what would be a rare win over the Gunners. David Moyes has beaten Arsenal just three times in his 10 years at the helm but his team's home form against the top flight's elite so far in 2012 bodes well for this one.

The manager will have reduced options in midfield, though. Darron Gibson is back in training after recovering from a knee injury but will not be fit enough to start — the Club's medical staff have him pencilled in as being available for the weekend trip to south Wales.

And both Seamus Coleman and Jack Rodwell have suffered recurrences of thigh and hamstring problems respectively that will likely see them miss out again. Rodwell, in particular, has struggled to shake off the muscle strain and there will inevitably be question marks over whether he will be fit enough to play for England in 2012, if selected.

Everton Assistant Manager, Steve Round, indicated that Rodwell will be given another week to recover after playing a full 90 minutes in the Merseyside derby but then missing the FA Cup draw with Sunderland at the weekend.

With the exception of Coleman, none of those injury concerns are likely to affect Moyes's starting line-up, however. Marouane Fellaini and Leon Osman are odds-on to continue their partnership in central midfield and, with Steven Pienaar returning after being cup-tied for the Cup quarter-final, Royston Drenthe will, in all likelihood, switch flanks and line up on the right.

Indeed, Pienaar or Coleman may be the only change from the side that started against Sunderland, although Tony Hibbert could come in for Phil Neville at right back as the now 35-year-old Captain rotates in and out of the team during this congested part of the fixture calendar.

The game will, of course, mark the return to Goodison for the first time of one-time Evertonian hero, Mikel Arteta. The Spaniard has made no secret of his affection for the Club that provided him the platform to finally get his career on track after frustrating spells at Rangers and Real Sociedad and he is expected to get a warm reception from the home faithful when he runs out of the tunnel for the first time since August.

Arteta was clearly struggling for form in a team that made a poor start to the 2011-12 season but the Basque-born midfielder has been a fixture in Arsenal's first team since making a £10m switch to The Emirates on the summer transfer deadline day.

Everton will, of course, be hoping to keep Arteta and, more importantly, Van Persie quiet as they look to extend their recent run to one defeat in 11 games. Key to their chances, of course, will be their high-tempo pressing game, resilient defending and the service to Nikica Jelavic.

The Croatian striker has played two full games now, scoring once and providing an assist for Tim Cahill in the other, and the onus will be on the midfield to carve out the chances for Jelavic to fire the goals that could lift Everton to a moral-boosting victory ahead of two tricky away games coming up in the next week.

Quotes or other material sourced from ToffeWeb

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