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A season that seems destined to die a slow and painful death has one more chance to be resurrected as the Toffees head to Stamford Bridge tomorrow to take on Chelsea in The F.A. Cup 4th round replay after a brilliant display at Goodison Park left the home side unlucky not to secure advancement into the next round. Both teams are coming off sub-par performances, with Chelsea having traveled to Craven Cottage for a 0-0 draw, while Everton failed to even show up at The Reebok, losing 2-0 in game that left supporters speechless.
That said, enough about the doom and gloom that is surrounding Finch Farm, and on to the actual game. The last time these sides met, Everton was certainly the better side, and if not for a single lapse in concentration and a spectacular performance by Cech in the Chelsea goal, Everton would be getting ready to host Reading at Goodison Park in a match they would certainly be favored in. Although Everton have not won at Chelsea in years, the Toffees certainly play well at Stamford Bridge, and it is certainly plausible that Everton will advance, although it may be unlikely.
In defense, both Baines and Neville are likely to get the start, with Distin also being a mainstay in the center. The question as always will be who gets the start between Heitinga and Jagielka. After last weeks display, it seems that Moyes needs to at least try Jagielka in the starting XI once again, just to see if it helps give the team some additional defensive muscle. Everton has had only 5 clean sheets in all competitions this season, which is never a good thing for a team that has difficulty scoring goals.
Billy, Arteta, Fellaini, and Coleman are all likely to get the start along with Tim Cahill in his usual spot, and hopefully Victor Anichebe will be consigned to the bench for the foreseeable future. Last weekend Anichebe turned in a truly horrendous performance, which is saying something considering the entire team played like absolute pants. It would be much better for Everton if Jermaine Beckford was given the start up top ahead of Anichebe, who despite his many physical gifts, seems to think that he is a player who should fall to ground at the slightest contact. That type of behavior was expected of the recently departed Steven Pienaar, not Anichebe. The best example of how poor Anichebe fared against Bolton is the entrance of Jose Baxter into the game. While many fans think Baxter has a future at the club, he is only 19 and has less than 10 appearances for the first team. Maybe Baxter could get the start this week then, it certainly couldn’t hurt the team.
With Saha out injured, and Anichebe hopefully in Moyes’ doghouse for a long time, it is time to give Beckford the start up top as the lone striker. While Beckford certainly could use a bit more seasoning, this is the perfect time to give the former Leeds man some more experience working as the lone striker, and given his knack for important goals, it may lead to something truly spectacular at Stamford bridge.
Finally, I wanted to take a look at a proposal I saw thrown out on another site, the name of which escapes me at the moment. A few weeks ago, Liverpool came to Stamford Bridge with a 3-5-2 formation using 3 center backs as the defenders, and this site espoused the idea that Everton should do the same. After thinking about it, if Moyes chooses to, the Toffees are well equipped to play such a formation. In the defense, Distin, Jagielka, and Neville could play in the back, with Baines and Coleman as the outside wings who have the speed to get up and down the pitch extremely quickly. In the center of pitch Arteta, Fellaini could be penciled in, with Moyes picking between Billy and Heitinga as the third central midfielder depending on how attack-minded he wants the squad to play. Of course up top Cahill could either partner with Beckford as a second striker, or slot into his usual spot right behind Beckford as the lone striker. While the formation is certainly unorthodox, Liverpool did use it to great effect, and at this point it isn’t as if the team has a whole lot left to lose.
Tomorrow’s game is an early one at 7:45 am ET in the US, and 12:45 pm over in the UK, the game will be available on Fox Soccer Channel here in the US, and until next time COYB!
Category: Previews
Tags: David Moyes, Everton, FA Cup, Leighton Baines, Louis Saha, Marouane Fellaini, Previews, Seamus ColemanTweet « Everton v. Bolton: A review of ineptitude | Home | Everton v. Chelsea: We Are Through! »
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