Everton will be aiming to extend their unbeaten run in the Premier League to seven matches when they host Manchester United at Goodison Park on Sunday.
The visitors, meanwhile, saw their streak of four successive league wins come to an end away to their city rivals Manchester City last weekend.
Having marginally avoided their first ever relegation of the Premier League era last season, Everton have become a much more solid unit under Frank Lampard in recent times.
Only four teams conceded more goals than the Toffees by the end of last campaign, yet they have the best defensive record in the entire division after eight matches, having only conceded seven goals.
The summer signings of Conor Coady and James Tarkowski have clearly had a huge baring on that, with Amadou Onana and Idrissa Gueye offering more energy and protection in midfield, too.
Granted, they have only scored the same amount at the other end, but most managers generally attempt to fix the defence as a matter of priority before searching for ways to help their team score more goals.
Everton ended a run of four successive draws by beating West Ham United prior to the international break, before securing a 2-1 win away to Southampton last weekend. Joe Aribo had provided the hosts with the lead four minutes after half-time, but Coady and Dwight McNeil quickly struck back to provide an important victory for their side.
With a four point gap opened up on the relegation zone ahead of the weekend’s action, Lampard will be hoping to see his side express themselves a little more in the final third against Man Utd on Sunday, while retaining their newly found defensive solidity.
Man Utd, on the other hand, were thrashed 6-3 the champions Man City at the Etihad Stadium last Sunday, with two late goals from substitute Anthony Martial making the scoreline a little kinder to the visitors.
Erling Haaland and Phil Foden both sensationally scored hat-tricks for the Citizens as Erik ten Hag’s side simply could not live with their opponents’ pace and precision in and out of possession, although summer signing Antony scored his second league goal in two matches with a ferocious effort from distance.
The Red Devils came from behind to beat Omonia 3-2 away from home in the Europa League on Thursday evening, with Martial and Marcus Rashford sparing their side’s blushes from the bench as the England forward bagged himself a brace.
Ten Hag was less than enthused with his side’s overall performance, though, branding them “not very good” in his post-match press conference. The former Ajax boss will be hoping for a major reaction from his players as they make the short trip to Merseyside to take on Everton on Sunday.
Everton Premier League form:
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Everton form (all competitions):
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Manchester United Premier League form:
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Manchester United form (all competitions):
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We say: Everton 1-1 Manchester United
We can envisage a tight game on Sunday, with all of Everton’s matches so far this season either ending as draws or only one goal apart.
Man Utd may be fatigued after enduring a tougher game than many expected in Cyprus on Thursday, so we think the Toffees can extend their unbeaten run.