Everton vs Manchester City – News and Probable Lineups

After a nearly two-week break from Premier League action, Manchester City are set to continue their pursuit of the title on Monday evening as they travel to Everton’s Hill Dickinson Stadium for the inaugural visit.

The Sky Blues triumphed over Southampton with a score of 2-1, advancing to the FA Cup final, while the Toffees experienced a painful last-minute 2-1 defeat to West Ham United.

Match overview

With Arsenal’s dreams of a quadruple dashed, the possibility of a treble for Manchester City seems increasingly tangible.

Having already secured the EFL Cup, Pep Guardiola’s side is favored to defeat the managerless Chelsea in the FA Cup final, while they maintain a firm grip on their destiny regarding the Premier League title.

Although Manchester City may start Monday’s match six points behind Arsenal in the league table, the current runners-up—with two games in hand—can rely on their impressive spring performance, achieving six victories consecutively across all competitions while conceding only two goals.

Guardiola’s squad had to work hard for their 1-0 league victory over Burnley and 2-1 success in the FA Cup semi-finals against Southampton, but edging over the finish line is preferable to missing out altogether, as the visitors remain unbeaten in their last 11 Premier League outings.

Since their surprising 2-0 loss to Manchester United in January, Manchester City have gathered 14 points from their last six away games in the league; to compare, only 17 points were earned from their first 11 away matches this season.

Historically, Guardiola has had the upper hand over David Moyes, not losing any of his previous 15 Premier League encounters with the Scotsman, claiming 12 victories and three draws during that span.

Moyes’s history against Guardiola paints a bleak picture, but the Everton manager must face the Catalan tactician at arguably the least opportune moment, as his team has begun to falter once more.

After amassing a commendable 10 points from five matches between February 28 and April 11, the home side enters Monday’s fixture on the back of two successive 2-1 defeats, both decided by heart-wrenching injury-time goals.

Virgil van Dijk’s 100th-minute winner in the derby for Liverpool came before Callum Wilson’s 92nd-minute clincher for West Ham last weekend, leaving Everton languishing in the lower half of the table and further damaging their chances of European qualification.

However, the Toffees will still remain within striking distance of the top six if they manage to pull off a surprise against City, as Brighton & Hove Albion heads into the weekend three points ahead, and Moyes’s side have yet to suffer three consecutive losses in the Premier League this season.

That said, the head-to-head statistics are daunting for Everton fans, as they have failed to register a win in a staggering 17 Premier League meetings vs Manchester City, who also triumphed in their last eight trips to Goodison Park in the league.

Team News

In his pre-match press conference, Guardiola mentioned that Rodri was “getting better” as he deals with a groin injury, but the Spaniard hadn’t trained before Friday and is uncertain for the upcoming match.

Regardless, Rodri’s replacement, Nico Gonzalez, is in no position to be sidelined following his stunning 30-yard strike that secured the FA Cup semi-final – the longest-range goal by any Manchester City player this season.

Centre-backs Josko Gvardiol (calf) and Ruben Dias (thigh) remain unavailable, but Guardiola’s squad is otherwise in fine form for the trip to Merseyside, where Erling Haaland, Jeremy Doku, and the departing Bernardo Silva are expected to return to the starting XI.

On the Everton side, Manchester City loanee Jack Grealish will be unable to feature against his parent club on Monday, as he has already been ruled out for the remainder of the season following foot surgery.

Grealish joins Jarrad Branthwaite (thigh) as long-term absentees, but Moyes will be buoyed by the return of Beto, who has completed concussion protocols after suffering a head injury in the Merseyside derby.

Beto could potentially take over from Thierno Barry at the front of the attack, thanks to his excellent form prior to his injury – notching four goals and one assist in his last three outings.

Everton probable starting XI:

Pickford; O’Brien, Keane, Tarkowski, Mykolenko; Garner, Gueye; McNeil, Dewsbury-Hall, Ndiaye; Beto

Manchester City probable starting XI:

Donnarumma; Nunes, Khusanov, Guehi, O’Reilly; Silva, Gonzalez; Semenyo, Cherki, Doku; Haaland

Manchester City don’t need to overwhelm their opponents at this stage of the season; they just need to secure wins, which is precisely what Guardiola’s squad has been accomplishing.

The visitors will be reintroducing well-rested key players against a struggling Everton team, and a seventh consecutive victory for the Sky Blues seems the only likely outcome.