Everton 1-3 Manchester United: Three Things We Learned

Everton and Manchester United kickstarted the Saturday action in the Premier League with an intriguing encounter at Goodison Park. The Toffees were able to take an early lead but it didn’t last long, and eventually, the Red Devils took the lead and held onto it – adding a third goal in injury time.

Today, we’re going to take a look at a few things we’ve learned from the game as PL fans gear up for another few weeks of no domestic football.

No Richarlison, no party

Richarlison is still missing for Everton, and it’s clear to see that this is proving to be quite the obstacle for the first team. He seems to be the only player capable of getting in behind the defence to provide Calvert-Lewin with some assistance. Without him there’s a distinct lack of attacking prowess, and the same can even be said for James Rodriguez. Carlo Ancelotti obviously knows that there is a problem and if he’s serious about the club making a push for the European places, then something has to change.

Fernandes saves the day

Bruno Fernandes produced one of his worst displays in a Manchester United shirt against Istanbul Basaksehir, with many questioning whether or not he was a one trick pony. As it turns out, there’s a whole lot more he can do, and he proved that on Merseyside. From scoring two goals to assisting Cavani’s first in a United shirt, he put in the sort of passionate performance that you need to thrive at this level. Whether or not he can sustain it, which bleeds into our third and final point, remains to be seen.

Can United keep it going?

Manchester United are currently priced at 2/1 to finish in the top four at 888sport, but let’s not pretend like their entire start to the campaign didn’t exist. They’re still not looking consistent enough to threaten the big boys in the league, and one win shouldn’t cloud over the frailties they have. Everton have their own issues to contend with but one thing Ole Gunnar Solskjaer did showcase was confidence on the touchline – something we haven’t seen from him in quite some time. He needs to take every game as it comes and during the international break, he has to try and focus in on perfecting this style. If they can do that, maybe they’ll have a shot at building some momentum leading up to Christmas.