Preview: Manchester United vs Everton

Out-of-form Everton travel to Old Trafford on Saturday afternoon to take on underperforming Manchester United in a high-stakes Premier League clash. 

United's bid to secure back-to-back Champions League finishes is nearly dead in the water after a 3-1 derby defeat to Manchester City last weekend left them 11 points adrift of fourth-placed Atalanta.

Erik ten Hag's job is on the line amid talks linking Zinedine Zidane with the Red Devils' dugout, which potentially spells trouble for the Toffees given the Dutchman's ability to deliver under pressure.

However, Sean Dyche’s future is also under scrutiny – betting experts and many Everton fans expect that the ex-Burnley coach will soon be the ex-Everton coach and relieved of his duties at Goodison Park. 

Last week produced mixed feelings in the blue part of Merseyside. 

Just days after an independent commission reduced Everton's ten-point deduction for breaching spending rules to six, Dyche's team squandered a 1-0 lead in a 3-1 home loss to West Ham United.

Despite generating an impressive 2.47 xG, the Toffees only scored once in a tenth consecutive winless outing in the Premier League (D5, L5), which left them only five points clear of the bottom three. 

Wasted opportunities left Dyche fuming in the aftermath, as the 52-year-old manager urged his team to shape up in front of goal, per Mail Sport. 

Conversion rate must go up at Old Trafford if Everton are to post their first top-flight win in Manchester since a 1-0 triumph in December 2013, when David Moyes was in charge of the Red Devils. 

Long-standing Struggle

It's all been doom and gloom for Everton at the Theatre of Dreams since Bryan Oviedo's winner inspired Roberto Martinez's side to a narrow victory over a decade ago. 

The Toffees have since gone winless on ten successive league visits to Man Utd (D4, L6), scoring one goal or fewer on nine occasions, including a 2-0 defeat in this corresponding fixture last term.

Unfortunately, their defensive performances have often failed to undo perennial scoring woes, with Everton conceding 2+ goals on four of their last six Premier League visits to Old Trafford. 

Speaking of woeful defending, Dyche's side bowed down in December's reverse fixture on home turf, slumping to a 3-0 defeat initiated by Alejandro Garnacho's memorable overhead kick.

That result marked Everton's fourth straight loss to Man Utd across all competitions and second in succession to see them concede multiple goals without a reply. 

Frontlines Must Step Up

Dyche's defensive-minded football might be a part of the problem, but Everton's underachieving forwards must take more responsibility for the team's underwhelming scoring record. 

Only the bottom two, Burnley and Sheffield United, have bagged fewer league goals than the Toffees' 29, highlighting Dyche's attack as the team's weakest link.

As for Burnley, they're reportedly contemplating the idea of suing the Premier League for reducing Everton's punishment, according to Mail Sport.

There's no better way for Dyche's charges to respond to such claims than to deliver something on the pitch, though leaving Goodison doesn't bode well. 

Everton have only got on the scoresheet twice across their last five league travels (D2, L3), worsening an already disappointing scoring return on hostile turf.

They've now averaged only 1.07 goals per Premier League trip this season, with only three clubs netting fewer away goals than the Toffees' 13.

Now or Never for Beto

Beto made amends for squandering a first-half penalty against West Ham with a second-half opener, scoring only his second league goal since swapping Udinese for Everton in the summer. 

The Portuguese striker's move hasn't worked out well thus far, but Dominic Calvert-Lewin's miserable form since recovering from injury makes him a better choice at the moment. 

Everton paid the Serie A outfit around £25.8 million to capture the 26-year-old's services, and it's time to give him a chance to prove his worth after a frustrating start to life in the Premier League.

His intimidating physical stature and athleticism resemble Erling Haaland, who caused United's backline all sorts of headaches last time out, perhaps showing the Toffees a way to beat Andre Onana.