England Premier League
Thursday 26th December 2019
Kick off at 3pm GMT
Venue: Goodison Park
Match Preview:
It’s exciting times at Everton as they have unveiled Carlo Ancelotti as their new manager. Suddenly Everton have gone from having one of the most inexperienced men in charge in Duncan Ferguson to the most decorated manager in the league. Ancelotti is top drawer and world class and it will be fascinating to see the Italian work his magic with the team he has.
One thing is for sure now, the players will have nobody to hide behind. If the team underperforms, the fans surely can't blame a manager who has won more silverware than the entire squad combined for not being good enough. So it is the players who will have to take responsibility for their performances, and if they are not good enough it is they who should be got rid of rather than the manager.
Ancelotti was in attendance for Everton’s last game, which was also at home where they drew 0-0 with Arsenal in a lethargic game where it was reported that Ancelotti shook his head on a few occasions. He has a huge job in front of him and the eyes of the football world will be centred on Everton now. The club come into this game in 15th place and just 4 points from the bottom three. They are unbeaten since sacking Marco Silva, that’s 3 games now and at home they have lost just once in their last five games. Still their win rate here needs to improve as it is less than 50%.
Burnley are in 10th place and are 5 points ahead of their hosts. A win could take them up at least two places and the team are in good form having won their last 2 consecutive games. Since being thrashed 5-0 against Tottenham they have beaten Newcastle and Bournemouth.
Sean Dyche’s team have generally struggled on the road and have lost 3 of their last 5 games though they did win their last away match. They are almost conceding on average 2 goals a game on the road.
Team News:
Everton: Alex Iwobi has a hamstring injury and could miss the whole of the Christmas period as a result. Theo Walcott is still out with a calf injury and could also miss the rest of the year. Morgan Schneidelin has been pencilled in to be ready for this game after his calf injury and will be assessed
Burnley: Ben Gibson looks like he will miss this game with an ongoing groin injury. Jeff Hendrick is suspended for this match. Aaron Lennon is ill but will be assessed to see if he can play in this match
Everton vs Burnley Head to Head:
Earlier this season Burnley beat Everton 1-0.
Last season Everton won this fixture 2-0.
Everton have scored 7 goals past Burnley in their last 3 meetings.
Everton vs Burnley Prediction:
It was interesting to see how Everton responded when Silva was sacked and Ferguson stepped in, they beat a good Chelsea side 3-1. Now they have Ancelotti we expect the club to be massively focused and they will be facing a good side but one they will believe they can beat especially being at Goodison. Burnley have beaten Everton on a few occasions and by no means will this be easy. Just how Ancelotti will set up his first team will be very interesting, but surely having one of the best managers to grace world football in the last 20 years will give motivation to the players. Ancelotti has also kept on Ferguson as his number 2, given how he is loved at the club that was a smart move by the Italian. We expect Everton to have fire in their belly’s for this game.
Everton vs Burnley Betting Tips:
Everton to beat Burnley at 1.72
Everton to score 2+ goals at 1.80
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