Everton welcome Sheffield United to Goodison Park on Saturday as both teams look to bounce back from defeats in the previous round.
The Toffees lost 3-1 at Bournemouth in their last match, while the Blades were beaten 1-0 by Southampton at Bramall Lane.
Chris Wilder will be disappointed that his team failed to find the back of the net against Saints, as Sheff Utd registered 17 shots, with only 4 reaching the target.
The Blades have managed one win from their first five Premier League matches and currently sit just one point above the relegation zone.
Everton have two league wins to their name this season and have picked up two more points than Sheff Utd so far.
Dominic Calvert-Lewin ensured his side went into half-time against Bournemouth with the score at 1-1. However, a poor second half display – especially defensively – led to the Toffees losing the match.
Everton bossed the possession throughout the game, but failed to make their 60% share of the ball count.
Prior to the season, the Toffees were being touted as potential candidates to break into the top six this year. However, the team doesn’t seem to have found its rhythm yet, and the club’s new signings have failed to live up to expectation.
On the other hand, Sheff Utd will be happy with their start to life back in the top-flight. They have been well-organised so far, and appear to be difficult to break down.
The likes of Luke Freeman, Oliver Norwood, and John Lundstram have excelled following the step up from the Championship.
Key midfielder John Fleck featured in Sheff Utd’s last match after returning from injury, and Chris Wilder will be hoping he well be fit enough for selection again.
As for Everton, Andre Gomes sat out of their trip to Bournemouth and the Portuguese midfielder is unlikely to be in the starting eleven this weekend.
Work hard 💪🏼😊💙 pic.twitter.com/B33XhJF29H— Lucas Digne (@LucasDigne) September 18, 2019
Work hard 💪🏼😊💙 pic.twitter.com/B33XhJF29H
These two teams have faced each other a whopping 131 times over the years, and the overall head-to-head record is extremely tight (Everton 53-47 Sheff Utd).
However, Everton are unbeaten in their last 5 meetings with the Blades (W3-D2-L0), and Sheffield United haven’t won this fixture since 1993.
This trend look set to continue on Saturday as Everton aim to maintain their recent domination in this tie.
Forebet predicts a home win, with both teams likely to get on the scoresheet.