Michael Kenrick 13/09/2025 19comments  |  Jump to last
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Everton sit in 5th place and are looking to extend their early season winning run when they host Aston Villa at Hill Dickinson Stadium on Saturday. 

No great surprises in the Everton line-up (apart from Nathan Patterson on the bench!), with Iliman Ndiaye declared fit to start after a little scare. In defence, Michael Keane is making his 200th Premier League appearance for the club, while Beto leads the attack. 

Mykolenko is injured so James Garner drops back into the left-back slot, with Jake O'Brien continuing at right-back.

Jack Grealish and Tim Iroegbunam take the field against their former club, while Lucas Digne starts for Villa, but Onana is out injured. 

The Villains kicked off... sort of, with Martinez standing on the ball for 15 seconds... Everton pushed forward first and Ndiaye played in Beto but the big man tripped over his own feet with the goal gapping and the ball squirmed behind, with Mings going down and needing treatment before he returned. 

Villa's main ploy was to deny possession to Everton but that failed and Everton tried to work it in, Grealish very active, winning the ball back and clipping it up to the back post where Beto had strayed offside. A brilliant ball forward from Tarkowski was perfect for Beto to receive behind the Villa defence but he made a total mess of it.  

A free-kick wide left was sent in by Dewsbury-Hall but Michael Keane headed over. 

From a good position, wide left, with Grealish pressing, Everton worked it all the way back to Pickford, then forward for a long throw-in wide right. Ndiaye skipped forward down the right channel, his cross defended for a throw-in. That was delivered in well, Beto's shot blocked before Grealish fired at Martinez, the ensuing corner drawing a foul on Martinez. 

Villa looked dangerous when Digne overlapped down the left, his cross headed away by O'Brien. Another brilliant ball played forward straight to Beto#s feet was immediately lost and Tarkowski was called for a perfectly good tackle on Rogers.

Grealish worked for a corner this time that Martinez did well to paw away. It allowed Villa ot mount an attack but they got themselves offside. Still, Everton found it hard to play out until Grealish was fouled.

Buendia somehow got a free-kick off Ndiaye, who redeemed himself, drawing a foul off Digne by denying him the ball. An Everton long throw fro Garner almost caused havoc but Martinez stole the ball off Keane's boot. 

Another push forward saw Grealish win another corner, Keane at the near post but it was too high for him. Grealish drew a challenge from Cash that won him the first yellow card.  

A decent Everton attack was affected by memorial applause in the crowd and Villa got forward as a result, a shot fortunately blocked. It was a pretty competitive game with Villa looking increasingly threatening when they were allowed to advance. 

Some great forward play by Ndiaye was spoilt by an overhit cross that Grealish tried to return but it was cleared and Villa surged forward again. Keane had to give away their first corner, Everton cleared but with no one upfield.

The Everton counter did eventually win a corner, the ball shanked behind by Bigarde, that somehow squirmed off Teilemans's knee and just wide for a second corner. Garner played it to Gana in space and he felt he just had to take one of his awful wasteful shots way off-target. 

Ndiaye lost the ball and Iroegbunam fouled Watkins from behind, drawing a yellow card for a dangerous free-kick but Digne could only hit the blue wall and that was pretty much it for a challenging first half in which Everton had come close but not close enough to scoring. 

Everton:  Pickford, O’Brien, Keane, Tarkowski, Garner, Gana, Iroegbunam, Ndiaye, Dewsbury-Hall, Grealish, Beto.

Subs: Travers, Patterson, McNeil, Barry, Dibling, Coleman, Alcaraz, Röhl, Aznou.

Aston Villa: Martinez, Cash [Y:33'], Konsa, Mings, Digne, McGinn, Tielemans, Buendia, Watkins, Bogarde, Rogers.

Subs: Bizot, Proctor, Lindelof, Elliott, Torres, Malen, Sancho, Maatsen, Guessand.

 

Reader Comments (19)

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Derek Knox
1 Posted 13/09/2025 at 13:57:55
Still undecided over the likeable lumbering lummox that is Beto.

Also, Tim seems to fade in games when playing well to start, other times he doesn't get involved enough!

Mike Hayes
2 Posted 13/09/2025 at 13:59:12
Looking good with options in the bench let’s get another win at home and the three points. Off to see the women at the old lady tomorrow 💙
Kevin Molloy
3 Posted 13/09/2025 at 14:10:28
letting Young go felt daft at the time, and so it has proven. Having to move Garner there is such a loss to the midfield.
Christy Ring
4 Posted 13/09/2025 at 14:15:46
Agree with Kevin, it's ridiculous we have to move Garner out if his proper position where he was immense against Wolves. If Aznou is fit enough for bench, why not start him?
Terry Farrell
5 Posted 13/09/2025 at 14:26:59
Illi ndiye starts made my day!
Rob Hooton
6 Posted 13/09/2025 at 14:27:50
I can see why Moyes has done it, the same team beat Brighton. Aznou was a doubt, so perhaps on the bench in case of emergency (or to get a run out if it’s going well).

Ashley Young did a good job for us, but he’s past this level now, it was time to part - perhaps he also just wants to play football, and we would rarely use him? He likely recognised his own limitations.

Bill Griffiths
7 Posted 13/09/2025 at 14:37:55
While I can understand to some extent the argument that it was better not to sign someone for the sake of it I find it impossible to believe they couldn't find anyone suitable to fill in temporarily.
Hope I 'm wrong but I think that the failure to sign a right back and left back will come back to haunt us this season.
Dave Abrahams
8 Posted 13/09/2025 at 14:38:12
I wouldn’t have Iroegbunam in centre midfield while I had a much better player playing out of position where his lack of pace is likely to be exposed, we were lucky to beat Brighton on the day maybe we will get away with it today and that will suit me but James Garner is a midfield player not a full back and we have the same problem in the right back position.
Alls well that ends well so hoping for a win.
Si Cooper
9 Posted 13/09/2025 at 14:41:28
It wasn’t letting Young go that was the problem, it was any failings in recruitment that have followed.

I disagree that Garner is absolutely irreplaceable in a midfield berth and so cannot be used as the utility player he is.

I do agree with Dave Abrahams that there may be other reasons for not exposing him at left back.

I am more concerned about still relying on our slowest central defensive pairing. It can be argued that the first Wolves goal was precisely due to that problem.

I know Tarks is a warrior and Keane has not done much wrong, but pace is their limiting factor.

As the Villa team isn’t published here I’ve had to look elsewhere. Fortunately it looks like, out of their starters, Watkins and possibly Rogers are their only really pacey attackers (at least I don’t associate Buendia, McGinn or Tielemans with speed across the ground, but I don’t know about Bogarde).

Maybe lack of pace is Villa’s current problem? If it is, I withdraw my initial concern. If we get a goal early on to prey on their anxiety I think we could break our recent hoodoo against them quite comfortably.

Come on you merciless Blues!

Edward Rogers
10 Posted 13/09/2025 at 14:42:16
We need Mykolenko back for next week.

Salah hates playing against him I think, so maybe the manager is thinking ahead?

Terry Farrell
11 Posted 13/09/2025 at 14:43:35
Dave with respect Tim ain't slow!
Si Cooper
12 Posted 13/09/2025 at 14:50:06
Terry, I take it as Dave is talking about Garner’s relative (lack of) speediness.
Dave Abrahams
13 Posted 13/09/2025 at 14:53:34
Terry (11)

I was referring to Garner's pace to be honest, but in central midfield that is not essential as long as you've got a football brain which I think Garner has got and uses it very well.

Not being too hard on Iroegbunam but I don't think he is ready yet and would have preferred it if he had gone on loan and Harrison Armstrong had stayed and played today for us instead of being on the bench at Preston — but it's early days and a long season, so maybe patience will tell.

Iain Crawford
14 Posted 13/09/2025 at 14:55:55
Not ideal at all Garner at left-back, but Anzou must not be ready.

I think we will leak a goal today, but have the players to score two or more. Everton 2 Villa 1. COYBLUES!

Paul Kossoff
15 Posted 13/09/2025 at 15:00:57
Why is Coleman not playing? Desperate times with no full-backs and Moyes has his mate sitting on the bench. Has Coleman not asked why he's not on the pitch?

Villa, no goals and no wins, and a sly dirty little fucking ex-Red playing for them, what can go wrong? Coyb.

Ernie Baywood
16 Posted 13/09/2025 at 15:51:47
We're missing someone in midfield who can control the game. Villa do have one, so they're controlling the midfield.

The best option we have is at left back. And I'm not convinced he's a better emergency left back than McNeil.

It's a mistake and one that's already been made this season. It didn't need to happen again.

Why is Digne being booed?

Alan J Thompson
17 Posted 13/09/2025 at 15:56:08
We should have scored at least one and the first about 2 minutes in and it seems strange to say it but Beto's feet seem to have gotten in the way.

It took Villa 15 minutes to get an attack into our half but thereafter seem to attack more than we did and then Villa seemed to find a way to negate Ndiaye and Grealish and this stopped nearly all our attacking intent.

Terry Farrell
18 Posted 13/09/2025 at 15:59:31
Fair dos lads I misread what you meant re Tim and Garner. Ndiye is breathtaking!
Paul Kossoff
19 Posted 13/09/2025 at 16:03:25
No live forum and no goals. Surely Beto has to be taken off, come on Moyes make a move.

Beto has just missed another sitter, three minutes in, come on, for fk sake!!!

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