Prediction: Everton vs Newcastle

September 17th 2010

Everton are looking to build on their hard-earned draw against Manchester United with the game versus Newcastle the opportunity for the first league win of the season. The Magpies will try to make amends for the shock defeat to Blackpool, so there is a good chance we will see an entertaining clash at Goodison Park.

After the season in which Everton impressed everyone despite numerous injuries to star players that never seemed to go away, the Toffees were expected to finally start a season with a bang, but that just didn’t happen. David Moyes’ side surprisingly encountered big problems at the start of their Premiership campaign, and picked up just two points from first four games. Nevertheless, they managed to win back some of the lost confidence with a solid performance in the 3:3 draw with Manchester United, after scoring two goals in the dying moments of the match and that could be just the boost they needed to turn this season around. Another good performance at their Goodison should be enough for the first Premier League victory of the season, especially as Newcastle are far from convincing on the travels. The hosts will have to make do without Jack Rodwell and Louis Saha, but Phil Neville and Tim Cahill should be fit to play.

Inconsistency is the word as far as Newcastle United are concerned since there is no other way to explain why the 6:0 victory over Aston Villa was followed by unconvincing performances against Accrington and Wolves, as well as home defeat to Blackpool. Chris Hughton’s side now need one good display to return to the right track but we cannot really expect for that to happen against Everton, who seem to have finally woken up. New signings Ben Arfa, Tiote and Campbell are yet to be handed their first starts and they are expected to add some more quality to the side, although they will clearly need some time to adapt to the new surroundings. Having won just five away games in their last two Premiership campaigns, the Magpies don’t have much reason for confidence before the trip to Liverpool, especially with Xisco, Best, Simpson, Gosling, Guthrie and Taylor all unavailable for this clash.

Conclusion

The game against Manchester United showed Everton are slowly finding their pace and the Toffees are expected to build on that result and finally record the first win of the campaign. Newcastle are one of the worst travelers in the league and after the home defeat to Blackpool, the lack of confidence will only add to the problems. I can see Everton winning this one.

Verdict: Home win Everton (1)

Best Odds: 4/6

Bookmaker: Ladbrokes