Everton will host Bournemouth at Goodison Park in the FA Cup fourth round on Saturday, with a spot in the next stage up for grabs.
Everton and Bournemouth are in reasonably good form, and Saturday afternoon’s FA Cup fourth-round tie at Goodison Park is likely to be a cracking contest.
The Toffees are coming into this game on the back of four wins from their last five matches in all competitions. They will be confident of grinding out a good result at home. It remains to be seen whether they can advance to the next round.
Meanwhile, Bournemouth have picked up four wins from their last six matches in all competitions. The Cherries have an impressive head-to-head record against the Toffees as well. They have picked up four wins from the last six matches between these two sides.
It will be interesting to see if Bournemouth can pull off another upset away from home and book their place in the next round of the FA Cup. The Hard Tackle takes a closer look at the encounter ahead of the latest meeting between the two sides.
Team News & Tactics
Everton
Dominic Calvert-Lewin is ruled out with a thigh injury, Orel Mangala has a knee injury, Seamus Coleman is out with a knock, Dwight McNeil has a knee issue, Armando Broja has an ankle complaint, and Youssef Chermiti has a thigh injury.
Everton will shape up in a 4-4-1-1 formation against Bournemouth, with Jordan Pickford in goal. Nathan Patterson and Vitaliy Mykolenko will start as the full-backs. They will look to contribute at both ends of the pitch. James Tarkowski will pair up alongside Jarrad Branthwaite at the heart of the defence.
Jack Harrison and Iliman Ndiaye will start in the wide areas. They will look to add pace and flair to the side. James Garner and Idrissa Gueye will add defensive cover and physicality to the side from the middle of the park. Abdoulaye Doucoure will start as the attacking midfielder here, with Beto leading the line for Everton against Bournemouth.
Probable Lineup (4-4-1-1): Pickford; Patterson, Tarkowski, Branthwaite, Mykolenko; Harrison, Garner, Gueye, Ndiaye; Doucoure; Beto
Bournemouth
The away side will be without Julian Araujo due to a thigh injury, Alex Scott due to a knee injury, Luis Sinisterra due to a hamstring injury, Marcos Senesi because of a thigh injury, Adam Smith due to a knock, Enes Unal due to a knee injury, Evanilson due to a metatarsal fracture, and James Hill due to a thigh injury. Julio Soler is away on international duty.
Bournemouth will shape up in a 4-2-3-1 formation against Everton, with Kepa Arrizabalaga in goal. Lewis Cook and Milos Kerkez will start as the full-backs. They will look to help out at both ends of the pitch. Illia Zabarnyi will form the central defensive partnership alongside Dean Huijsen.
As for the midfield unit, Ryan Christie will start alongside Tyler Adams in the double pivot, and they will look to help out defensively. David Brooks will start in the attacking midfield role, and he will look to create goalscoring opportunities for his teammates.
Justin Kluivert and Antoine Semenyo will start in the wide areas, and they will look to add pace and flair to the side. Finally, Dango Ouattara will lead the line for Bournemouth against Everton on Saturday.
Probable Lineup (4-2-3-1): Kepa; Cook, Zabarnyi, Huijsen, Kerkez; Tyler, Christie; Semenyo, Brooks, Kluivert; Ouattara
Key Stats
- Bournemouth have won their last three matches against Everton in all competitions.
- 16 goals have been scored in the last six matches between these two sides.
- Everton have picked up four wins from the last five matches.
- Bournemouth have picked up four wins from the last six matches.
- Bournemouth have been eliminated from the FA Cup in both of their previous ties with Everton in the competition, in round three in 1937 and round five in 2016. However, the Cherries won both Premier League meetings with Everton this season. The last side they beat three times in the same campaign in all competitions was Carlisle United in 2012/13.
Player to Watch
Antoine Semenyo
The Bournemouth winger is our key player to watch out for. The Ghanaian international has been in impressive form this season, and he will look to add to his goal tally for the campaign. The Cherries will depend on him to open up goalscoring opportunities and find the back of the net.
Everton have shown vulnerability at the back, and it will be interesting to see if Bournemouth can find a way past them. Bournemouth’s star attacker will look to guide his side to the next round of the competition this week.
Prediction
Everton 1-2 Bournemouth
Both teams will fancy their chances of getting a good result here, and this is likely to be an open game with a fair few chances. Neither side are expected to sit back and play a defensive game here.
Both sides are likely to get on the score sheet here, but Bournemouth have more quality going forward, and they should be able to grind out a narrow win away from home. The Hard Tackle predicts a 2-1 win for Andoni Iraola and his charges.
