Everton vs Newcastle United

And if we stay up, we will be getting rid of as many as possible but that won't be easy. Our team for the first game of next season is going to be unrecognisable, one way or the other.

Hopefully, they still have the pride and fight in them to give us a chance over the next six games.

Hopefully Calvert-Lewin is finding his way to his best form and will be assisted by Doucouré and his running and Iwobi with his sharp passing.

Only a win will do.

COTB

You're right, mate, they will be plotting an out.

It amazes me that the players who get a team relegated scarper soon as they can.

I really hope that not playing Onana to avoid injury so we can sell him doesn't happen. This idea sounds crazy seeing the predicament we're in now.

Garner will be pushing Onana for a starting berth anyway tomorrow, so it's great news he's back training but he's not quite as critical as Seamus.

We the fans will be like the Shawshank Redemption, fresh fish scene, baiting Gordon.

Seamus being back would be massive!!

Nottm Forest just dumped us near the trap door. Haaland couldn't save us now…

It's a must-win tomorrow night…

May the football gods be with us tomorrow.

Sitting next to me, my daughter's record is very impressive:

Won 11
Drawn 2
Lost none.

Let's hope her run continues tomorrow.

Hopefully we won't be out of the Premier League long. A club that season after season sells its best players – in truth, it will catch up with you. I know it's not over and yes mathematically we can do it but, hand on heart, really?

Remember those Top 10 finishes? Blimey, we moaned we should be better than this. Those were the days!!

No football, just a horrible intimidating atmosphere that will make the Geordies long for mid-table, and curse their top 4 aspirations. Let's send them home with a splitting headache.

We likely need to finish above Leicester on points (better goal difference than us) so that's the key game, and obviously Bournemouth home has to be assumed 3 points for any chance of survival. If we can't win at Leicester, then the Wolves away game becomes must-win.

Marginal goal difference is only likely to come into it if we're same points as Leeds. The good news is they also play Man City (away) and the Skunks.

(It's hard to see more than a single point from Skunks, Man City and Brighton games but you never know...)

We simply have to get the win, never mind a draw, because going to Leicester will be tough and our away record is appalling.

We might get lucky at Wolves, who are pretty safe, but Brighton will recover from their FA Cup setback; that last game at home to the Cherries is scary, with their ability to score goals.

Let's get 3 points.

It all feels very different with a win tonight but are the squad capable? We need 2 or 3 miracles!

No, they're not Real Madrid. But neither were Wolves, Leicester, Southampton and Fulham.

As usual we have a pair of useless officials tonight and I always feel we never get our fair share of decisions. Praying for a miracle!

Good luck, Everton, and to the fantastic Evertonians that will be there inside and outside the ground.

Tactics and strategy will be a key part of this game; Dyche has a couple of systems that he can use:

4-5-1, packing the midfield to stop Newcastle playing through us;

Or 4-4-1-1, using Doucouré behind Calvert-Lewin in a free role, putting Gray out wide and bringing Iwobi into the centre.

What Dyche cannot do is set up in an attacking way, and then getting counter-attacked. Ultimately, we need 3 points.

I'm sceptical of the officials in charge. I'm sure that Mariner and Cavendish have teamed up before to shaft us.

Isn't it about time we did!

Pickford
Coleman, Keane, Tarkowski, Mykolenko
Doucouré, Gueye, Onana, Garner
McNeil
Calvert-Lewin.

Nothing but the 3 points is good enough, it would knock the stuffing out of our fellow strugglers.

It's going to be a long next 12 hours.

Up the Blues!!!

Tonight is not a must-win. A draw would not be a disaster.

The Man City and Brighton games are likely losses, but there will be surprises so maybe we'll get a win that we didn't expect. The Leicester game is a must-not-lose, not a must-win. We don't want to allow them to pull away and a draw will keep them in our sights.

So, don't panic if we don't win either of the next two games. Draws will not be bad results. Disappointing but by no means disastrous.

Chris #40. That's a good appraisal of what we need to do, and the highlighted games for a Houdini act, seem feasible.

Good luck to all the fans going tonight. Do your bit and just maybe the players will have the heart and fight to get 3 points.

With our away record being so poor, then maybe tonight is a must-win, which will be a tough ask against a team sitting 3rd in the Premier League, and you could argue if we couldn't beat Fulham at home so why should we expect us to beat Newcastle?

But this is Everton and that's what they do, never make anything easy, and as they proved last season, trailing by 2 goals to Palace in our last home game… and wecame back to win. We beat Newcastle last season with 10 men – not that I am advocating going behind or getting a man sent off.

As Forest showed that, even conceding first doesn't mean the game is over, and Leicester came from a goal behind to snatch a draw at Leeds.

Despite all the passion that will be generated by our fans, tonight the players need to be calm and clinical, and not be foolhardy in their approach.

I think having Seamus and Doucouré back will give the team a big lift, and will certainly increase our attacking options. I am sure we will go through every emotion tonight, which hopefully ends with us winning.

Finally, I hope Dyche has a word with Pickford before the game to not let himself get wound up as he always seems to against this lot. We need him to be calm and display why he is England's Number 1. I just feel the last couple of games he has become a bit hyper and that affects his distribution, which was poor against Palace.

Leicester City – 44
Leeds Utd – 42
West Ham Utd – 34
Bournemouth – 31
Nottm Forest – 29
Southampton – 27
Everton – 24

We know it – and it's been said a million times – but, if we're going to dig ourselves out, we have got to do better than a goal every 120 minutes.

Somehow... Jeez – we've only got 540 minutes left.

Our team has zero goals in it, and simply cannot win games. We'll likely get turned over tonight, and to stay up we're going to have to win away – it just doesn't feel as though it'll happen so I'm resigned to the Championship.

Realisitcally our only hope is for other teams to be worse than us, and there aren't 3 teams worse than us this season. I can see us finishing second bottom easily.

Also, all the stuff about the crowd doing their bit really winds me up – footballers should take responsibility for playing football, not supporters. Relying on your home form and home support is a recipe for disaster which is coming home to roost.

Tonight is do-or-die in my opinion. But I did say that with Spurs and Fulham!

Occurs to me that every 'last' at Goodison this season could be the last in the top flight.

It's so unforgivable. A bunch of fools took a middling side, spent and made it dreadful.

You just have to look at that goal tally. We didn't need much. 4 or 5 more goals and we'd be sitting in a much different position. Yet we hired a coach who would 'keep it tight' and didn't buy or even manage to loan an attacker.

We can beat Newcastle in a one-off game. But it's hard to expect too much.

Yet such is my malaise that, if we lose tonight and put even more weight on the trapdoor beneath us, I can't boo. If we win I won't celebrate like the Palace game last season. It feels too far gone for that.

I would be tempted to play Garner ahead of Onana to keep possession better for us.

If we could stay clear of injuries and suspensions for the last few games, it would be a massive help and, on that note, while Dyche must get plenty of effort and fight from the players, they must keep their heads and do nothing silly.

If Gordon plays, give him stick but no objects should be thrown. And stay off the pitch!

We need to concentrate on our players and back each one to the hilt, no matter what. I feel for them, the pressure on them is enormous. Let's show the football world that once again Evertonians are by far the best!

COYB!

WSNBM!

Yes, you are correct, players should always and I mean always take responsibility and give of their best; unfortunately some don't, and the best some have just isn't good enough. That's why the crowd is important and relying on your home support isn't always a recipe for disaster. It wasn't last season and it quite possibly will not be this season either.

I'm going tonight to roar my team on to a desperate win, I don't care how they do it but, at the end of the night, we will be 15th from bottom. Not pretty, not something we want to see… but, with the people we have in charge off the field and some of the players we have in the squad, it's a position I will cherish and hope we retain until the last game of the season.

You don't have to tell me, James, and other fans who feel the way you do, that's exactly what you want as well.

I believe we are staying up because: We Shall Not Be Moved.

We're not suddenly going to find goals, form or wins in my view, and literally nobody seems to have anything other than blind faith in this team keeping us in the Premier League.

We probably need 7 points absolute minimum to stay up, so 2 wins and a draw. Where are they coming from? I just don't see it, and 35 points probably won't be enough anyway.

We need a win from either of these games. It's that simple. Win or bust.

Not exactly a great team to compare us to! Villa are top of the form league in 2023, we're bottom of the form league during the same period.

I know we lost but I heard it was a very dubious penalty that made all the difference; I might have heard wrong.

Everton have been atrocious this season but we were beginning to find a stride before Doucoure's suspension, and all this whilst playing without a recognized striker. When we have got our best players on the pitch, we are definitely a mid-table side who could beat anyone on our day and I think we will be near full strength tonight.

I've just listened to a fella in the gym moaning about the season ticket price increase (the deadline for renewals is tomorrow) and I said to him that it's not so much the increase, it's the fact that we have been getting short-changed for years. He just shrugged his shoulders and said "Exactly!"

We will see tonight, James, but Goodison Park, especially under floodlights and especially when the crowd is up for it, will always be a hard place for the opposition; that's why the first 30 minutes is crucial tonight.

I have watched teams wilt at Anfield for years and always criticized them for lacking heart, caving in to the Liverpool crowd. I've always been wrong on that score, though because I had never taken into consideration how much harder the Liverpool players work, getting energized by the crowd.

I honestly believe, when Goodison is in full voice, we have a crowd that is as good as any. So hopefully home advantage is massive tonight.

I've resigned myself to it for my own health and sanity.

The Richarlison transfer effectively killed us as an attacking unit.

We are quite simply, sad to say, fucked.

Would be great if our team and all the players could show the same desire and commitment and organization which we had in Dyche´s first game as Everton manager, when we defeated Arsenal at Goodison. If we can reach that standard in our remaining games, we have a good chance to stay up.

Hope that our players show belief and confidence, especially going forward and in the final third. Put bodies in the opposition's penalty box, and put in more crosses and shots than we have done lately. Great that we have Calvert-Lewin back to spearhead our attack.

I think we agree that we have some "confidence players", especially McNeil, Iwobi and Gray, who have the technical ability to run with the ball and have a good shot, if they can produce the best of themselves. McNeil has been able to do it lately, Iwobi also most of the time (although he still needs more self-belief when shooting), but Gray has struggled lately.

The latter should, when possible, travel with the ball, and not stop so frequently, and use more his good shooting. Hopefully Dyche and his coaching staff can heighten or instill more confidence in these players and that our fans can also help by encouraging them.

The stakes are high, but if the Everton players fight for the badge with the "never-say-die" attitude, they have fulfilled at least the pledge that "minimum demand is the maximum effort".

There is no finer example than the Fulham fixture at home. Expected to win, we needed to dig deep and look what happened… so predictable.

I simply can't see us beating Newcastle tonight; they have goals all over the pitch and will pick us off.

The upcoming fixture that will 100% doom us is at Leicester. Again does anyone expect us to win that cup final? When has this squad ever?

Am I negative? No, just a realist – we are atrocious. After 55 years, I've simply come to the realisation that, this time, this is it.

Well, we all support our club in different ways and I am sorry you are gloomy as are other members of the EFC parish.

We will get the points needed to stay up and unfortunatley face another battle next season. Poison Bill et al will be gone and we can start the rebuild. (Again!)

For me, just remember to stay positive.

Negative Waves Scenes from Kelly's Heroes Movie

Newcastle are on a roll, no doubt, but they are virtually the same players who couldn't beat anyone not that long ago.

We need a win or two desperately, or a win and a draw in our next two games.

As per usual, we need to start scoring goals and we may do now Calvert-Lewin and other first-choice players are returning. Fingers crossed.

I'm only a part-time supporter and relegation won't mean as much to me as some of you lads on here and elsewhere, I feel for you.

It will be tragic if we were to go down at this time and after all those years in the top flight.

Our defence hasn't been the problem so tonight could be different and similar to the Arsenal game.

I don't expect miracles but Calvert-Lewin does make a big difference to this team. I'm not making predictions as Murphy's Law was named after me and my betting record is shocking but I'm not defeatist.

UTFT!

I make decisions on what I've seen, not on 'maybe's. We have 3 home games left, 2 against Top 4 teams. 3 away games and we've only won 1 away all season so far. Can we get them 3 wins to make us safe?

Yes. But has this team done anything this season to suddenly think we can do that, I don't think so. Anyway let's hope tonight is the start of one of those wins we need.

We have had a bad run of three games but have had four very important players out in most of them. Tonight, we should be at full strength with hopefully a bear-pit atmosphere.

The time for predictions of doom accompanied by a flood of “I told you so”s is not today. We need to unite to drive the team on – we are not dead yet!!

A win tonight and the fight will still be on.

It'll take time for the players to regroup with Calvert-Lewin in the team and last game the support for him wasn't there, it was too deep – and that's been a consistent issue for a while.

We need to attack as a unit and defend as a unit. It's not down to individual players to do the job but the team seems to think it is.

If the team comes alive in a joined-up way tonight, we'll use that as the benchmark. Until that happens, there's little evidence for change.

Set-piece quality will also be really important as we are a tall team with Onana and Doucouré back.

As for the ‘we're down' posters, I can understand thinking it and being pessimistic. But, I don't get why you bother posting it repeatedly on TW? What does it serve you to drag the morale down of other supporters who are up for the fight?

UTFT!

A great link James but eyes are playing tricks with me, every time I saw Donald Sutherland it wasn't him, it was Danny O'Neil. Even the accents had changed but not the meanings, "Have a little faith," he said, "All this bleedin' (my version) negativity," he said, "Start believing," he said – and they achieved their objective in the end, didn't they.

Newcastle are not bad, nothing special and their fans (Scotsmen with their brains kicked in) are okay but they are getting fucked tonight. Just believe, have a little faith and trust the manager, team and fans to get those 3 points tonight.

Paul Hewitt (65) lovely last line, loved it, see you're believing already now come on the rest of you lovely doubting Thomas's !!

"assignment or banishment to an inferior position, place, rank, or condition"

Are we there yet?

I'm neither confident nor comfortable with the current team but by Christ I still think we've got a chance. If we're not 1-0 up after 5 minutes tonight, just watch the pile-on!

I'm not embarrassed at all saying I can't see us staying up. I base it on lack of goals and current form. Also, the quality we sell, season after season.

Last season, we beat Palace and stayed up. We must win and win more. Perhaps it might happen? I wish it to happen, even prayed but we must have realism as the disappointment can be overwhelming.

Also the quality of teams we have to play all have something to play for. Newcastle are in the Top 4 and well-placed. They are not Palace but are beatable.

Football is very unpredictable at times. No one should be embarrassed about giving an opinion on here as we all see things differently. It makes the analysis of football more enjoyable.

Please feel free to tell me so if we stay up! I will enjoy it.

Safe journey all.

I do not consider myself a doom merchant, just one who looks at the evidence available. I don't see three worse teams than us, sorry to say. I'd be delighted with points tonight… but really?

I've been a blue since 1961 and this is without a doubt the most abject side I have witnessed. Not a defeatist but I truly can't see us getting the points needed.

Here's hoping I'm totally wrong. COYB

Leeds, Leicester and Southampton.

UTFT

If we're in the Top 6, will it be positive that we could make a late charge to gain automatic promotion? Or if we're mid-table, will it be a case of looking over our shoulders, worrying about falling out of the Championship?

The way I look at it, rather than trying to avoid relegation, we should think that our remaining Premier League fixtures present an opportunity to gain promotion a year early.

Negativity is infectious. If fans start believing a defeat tonight spells the end, then it lets the players off the hook and they may down tools, as Watford did last season.

The Kenwright era is finally coming to a close and unfortunately it looks like we will get what we deserve during his reign.

The man is just poison running through the club's veins!!

If Newcastle show up meaning business, they will obliterate our toothless mob simply because they are miles ahead in all aspects of the game.

A loss by 3 goals, I fear.

We need to get the atmosphere going and the players need to work their socks off to get a win.

We live in hope, not expectation.

Be that as it may, we will need 34 points to survive and the result tonight will tell us if this non-scoring bunch are up to the challenge.

As ever with managers, Dyche can hardly lose. A £1M bonus if we stay up or the same amount in the 'Fuck Off money' if he fails the test.

Who'd be a Premier League manager, eh?

He faded quite badly in the second half so maybe play him from the start and swap him for Onana after an hour. Being deselected may be the kick up the arse that Onana needs as he really has not done enough in games for me, and he needs to up his work rate and intensity, far too patchy and inconsistent, goes missing far too much.

If it isn't working with Calvert-Lewin, then maybe Gray can come on for him, he (Gray) is another player who needs to deliver a lot more than he has recently.

I think Iwobi is capable of positive work but he needs players to fucking move and throw him a bone, not our strong point though sadly, hopefully, Calvert-Lewin is awake and genuinely up for it, that will help a lot.

Disappointed that Dyche has not incorporated Yerry Mina in the past though, this may really bite us on the arse.

With Bournemouth, probably safe, Wolves, safe, and Leicester still to come, this is not make or break; it is without doubt our second most difficult game of the six still to play.

Leeds Utd's run-in is horrible. Forest's isn't much better.

We have games at home to Bournemouth and away to Leicester and Wolves where we could get something. It might just be enough, but it's going to the wire.

34 points is the lowest survival tally in Premier League history. I think that might be beaten this season.

We don't score many. They don't concede many. I doubt it will be a goal-feast but possibly a game which will be won by a set-piece or a piece of genius. Here's hoping it's us which produces something special.

Such a litany of unforced errors has got us to here, and I'm not even talking about the kamikaze signings.

Why did we hold onto Lampard for a year? If Chelsea hold onto him for as long as we did, he will relegate them too.

Not buying a striker, in the Summer. Never mind, we'll put that right first thing in January. Sorry no, make that at the end of January. Actually, who needs strikers?

Useless, really awful. So now we get to drag their arses out the fire again.

The biggest issue is that, when you listen to the pundits and commentators describe the Leeds, Leicester and Forest teams in their last few games, they are all describing teams with potential goals in them and a real desire to play to win.

They are not describing teams that are running scared or playing on their nerves, like Chelsea currently are. They are describing teams who are looking to win.

I thought against Fulham and Palace we looked liked nervous wrecks. It's that mentality that might be our undoing. It has to be shackles off tonight to save our season and get the 3 points or we are fucked.

If Dyche goes all defensive, we'll play right into Newcastle's hands.

Let's hope we can get the predicted starting 11 on the pitch and maybe improve it with Garner for Onana.

There is iterally zero chance of Chelsea going down. Would need 7 teams going ahead of them, including 3 of the bottom 5 getting 10 points from their remaining games. Not happening – albeit would be nice!

Lampard holding the fort well there – played 5, lost 5 but he's 'more than happy' to speak to Pochettino to give him advice on the squad. Hilarious, I would assume Poch has blocked Lampard's number on his phone!

Iwobi to bang one in tonight, can feel it in my water.

We have gotten our hopes up so many times this season and even at home they continue to play badly. Maybe they can produce another tight 1-0 game like they did against the Gunners to get us off the bottom.

C.O.Y.B.

We need to start fast though. These have pace and energy and if they Nick a goal early we will be in shit.

Was tempted to say Jimmy G instead of Garner but with this amount of pressure let those who’ve got us in this shit get us out or be remembered as the ones who sank us.

I like realists, but I hate defeatists, but not before the game on a ToffeeWeb thread!

Where’s the others? Come on all those impending danger characters, get posting your negativity now, it works sometimes, I promise!!🤞

It's not in our hands anymore, all it takes is for teams around us to match our results and we're history.

Ps...im not eluding to Tw's being fools, I'm just being realistic. We've been here too many times and I fear have used up all our luck.

If they fancy it, we could spring a win and perform well. If like so many games over the last few seasons (and even recent ones like Fulham) they don't feel like putting the required effort in, we're in trouble. Not many of them seem to have enough personal or professional pride to turn up week in, week out.

Makes it tough to say what will happen as I don't think the players even know until they run out of the tunnel. Here's hoping for that win.

Good luck, lads, we're all behind you (and the sofa).

Hope that Onana, Duke and Coleman can all start this match, I think it would be harsh on Garner to be dropped after his decent ish performances but Iwobi is the natural replacement on the right for Gray, who has been woeful all month in my opinion. Oh for someone to take their man on and get a decent cross in the box for Calvert-Lewin, who I thought did very well against Palace. We looked a lot more of a team with him up top, I think we are desperate for him to find his scoring touch again.

Nervous and excited in equal measure, I wish I was able to be there tonight roaring them on and imagine Goodison will be electric.

COYB, sort it out!!!

But with due deference to Dave Lynch 104, it's Happy Hour tonight

COYB!

However, someone can become a hero tonight. Every player can leave the pitch feeling proud. Redemption is on offer and our players must grab it. Let this night be a new beginning. Their hour has come

He's just reached a million quid raised.

That's fucking amazing 👏.

The crowd can only do so much so Dyche had better take a good look into their eyes to see who's up for this.