A win last week at home to Sunderland keeps Coventry City at the important one point per game marker as they continue to adapt to Premier League football. There were clear signs of improvement, though there was more than a hint of fortune about the goals scored, Coventry need to keep picking up points as a tougher winter fixture list begins to loom.
An away trip to an Everton side that have only lost twice this season – to Chelsea and Arsenal – has to be considered one of the tougher games the Sky Blues have left. David Moyes’ side are hard-working, energetic, and while they’re a little rough around the edges, they are proving to be among the best of the rest in the Premier League.
Expected Line-Up
Frank Lampard made the bold decision to drop Matt Grimes last week and it paid off with a more convincing display in possession from the Sky Blues. Victor Torp took over the conducting duties, while Caleb Yirenkyi was there to sit in out of possession. The passing move for the third goal demonstrating the potential of such a midfield set-up. It’s one thing doing it at home to a struggling team, it will be another to do so on a tough away trip.
There might be a temptation to throw in Grimes or Frank Onyeka to add some experience in the middle of the park against an Everton side with a strong midfield. However, it feels as if Lampard is likelier not to make any changes and see how Torp and Yirenkyi handle the occasion.
Elsewhere, a possible return for Bobby Thomas provides the only scope for change in the starting line-up. With Ethan Pinnock and Stephen Mfuni doing so well last week against Sunderland, that could see a switch to a back three, with probably Yann Gboho sacrificed from the attack to make way. The manager didn’t reveal whether Thomas was available in his pre-match press conference, so assuming he’s not fit, it should be an unchanged XI.
Last Time We Met
As can be seen from the BBC Sport website appearance below, it was a very different era when Coventry City last took on Everton in a competitive game. The Sky Blues were at the start of a 10-game winless run that ultimately cost them their Premiership place, with this defeat to fellow strugglers Everton proving costly.
Goals from Scott Gemmill and Danny Cadamarteri put Everton into a comfortable position at Highfield Road within 15 minutes. Kevin Campbell sealed the rout around the half-hour mark before future Everton player, Lee Carsley, scored from the spot for Coventry for a consolation for Gordon Strachan’s rudderless side in the closing minutes.
Key Questions
Have Everton Become One Of The Best Of The Rest?
David Moyes has overseen a rebuild at Everton over the past couple of years under new ownership. Out has gone a series of high earners and underperformers and in has come a younger, hungrier outfit, often plucked from the excesses of the England’s biggest clubs.
A midfield unit of James Garner (ex-Manchester United), Harrison Armstrong (academy graduate), and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall (ex-Chelsea), with Hayden Hackney available off the bench epitomises how David Moyes has moulded the Toffees into a young and hungry unit. While there were complaints over a lack of summer recruitment, it has provided the platform for a young, hard-working team to shine.
The sometimes-maligned Thierno Barry is proving a key figurehead in attack, with the exciting Tyriqe George a bag of tricks on the left side. With experience at the back from Jordan Pickford and James Tarkowski, there’s a really nice mix of youth and experience to make Everton an effective team unit – even if they have to play either a centre-back (Jake O’Brien) or central midfielder (Merlin Rohl or Ainsley Maitland-Niles) at right-back.
With just a few extra bodies, Everton could well look to repeat the European qualifying exploits of David Moyes first spell at the Toffees, a far cry from the perennial struggles of the past decade.
Did Dropping Matt Grimes Make This Team Better?
It certainly felt like Coventry City played better last week without Matt Grimes’ methodical passing in the middle of the park. Aside from a fluent third goal, the tangible impact on chances created was minimal. The main difference between the attacking display against Sunderland versus the Fulham game was that three of Coventry’s chances went in, most of them via deflections.
While there’s something to be said for the team’s willingness to play forward quicker and take on chances earlier, that didn’t really bear out last week in terms of chances created. The hope is that it provides a platform for this team to play more confidently and fluently as they get used to new personnel in midfield, the danger is that last week’s scoreline masks that this is still a team that struggles to create quality chances.
On top of that, the new midfield set-up faces the challenge of finding a platform to play away from home against an energetic opposing unit. Victor Torp is not the most mobile or assertive out of possession and that could leave Caleb Yirenkyi with a lot of work off the ball to cover the gaps.
Frank Lampard cannot be fooled by last week’s winning performance to believe everything has been fixed in midfield.
Three Or Four In Defence?
Lampard has a real selection dilemma on his hands if Bobby Thomas is available for this game. Ethan Pinnock has been rock solid every since coming into the team, while Stephen Mfuni sparkled alongside him last time out. Neither deserves to be left out, despite the sense that Bobby Thomas has been among the team’s best performers this season.
A possible lack of fitness for Thomas potentially provides cover not to start him here, however, there must surely be a temptation to utilise the trio in the same team given how well they’ve performed this season. As much as Frank Lampard clearly prefers a 4-2-3-1 system, it is starting to look inevitable that Coventry City will end up playing a back three regularly this season unless one of Pinnock, Mfuni or Thomas is injured.
There are parallels to the League One promotion-winning campaign, where the strength of Kyle McFadzean, Michael Rose and Dominic Hyam effectively forced Mark Robins – along with injuries – to abandon his preferred system in order to platform his team’s best performers. Whether it’s in this game or somewhere down the line, don’t be surprised to see a back three become a regular starting formation this season.
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