It's confirmed that Donyell Malen has left Aston Villa and I don't think this will split opinion, but he will be missed. What will divide opinion is his importance. Me, I liked him and thought he was valuable and I'd have liked to see him at Villa Park longer.
That said, I have absolute trust in the manager and I'm sure we will have a player coming in to replace him and I'm sure that player will contribute just as Malen did and possibly even better. I'm not convinced the Tammy rumours are true though and it's only because of something I saw on Twitter from our Director of Football Operations about not believing the rumours.
That said the Malen one was doing the rounds for a few days, so do I believe or not believe. If Tammy comes, he'll be competing directly with Ollie and I guess that can't be a bad thing, but is he going to want to come to be second fiddle or are we going to start playing with two up?
All that written, I'd not be surprised if someone came in that we haven't heard a thing about. Someone big!
So, thanks Don but this post is about Everton on Sunday and yes, it's a big game as they all are these days because we need to keep the gap or make it bigger and this is a good opportunity. And an important one because Liverpool have Burnley and I fancy that's going to be a party.
And we've had a nice little break. The players should be ready and I fancy if we approach the game as we should and we give the necessary 100% for 95 minutes, the result will take care of itself. That said, Everton have done well away from home since Moyes returned, so it wont be a walk in the park.
Three points is big, this is business and our eyes are on the prize. Lets go.
Match facts from the BBC
-
Aston Villa are unbeaten in all 13 of their Premier League games against Everton since their return to the division in 2019 (W9 D4).
-
Everton have lost each of their last four Premier League away games against Aston Villa, their longest losing run at Villa Park since between October 1995 and April 2001 (6).
-
Aston Villa have kept more Premier League clean sheets against Everton than any other opponent (25) and have shut the Toffees out in eight of their last 10 meetings.
-
Everton have won three of their last five away games in the Premier League (D1 L1), keeping a clean sheet in four of those five outings – as many as their previous 18 on the road beforehand.
-
Aston Villa have won their last 11 home games in all competitions. They last had a longer run between March and October 1983 (14), while they last had a longer run in the same season between October and February in 1971-72 (12).
-
Since David Moyes returned to the club last year, Everton have won nine of their 19 Premier League away games (D4 L6). Their previous nine away wins had come over a 65-game spell (D21 L35) across three different managers (Rafael Benítez, Frank Lampard and Sean Dyche).
-
Everton have kept a clean sheet in four of their last five Premier League away games, and are looking to keep three consecutively on the road for the first time since May 2021 (4 under Carlo Ancelotti).
-
Emiliano Buendía has been involved in 10 goals in all competitions this season (6 goals, 4 assists), his joint-best return in a single campaign for Aston Villa along with 2021-22 (4 goals, 6 assists).
-
Morgan Rogers has more goals (8) and more assists (6) than any other Aston Villa player in all competitions this season, having a hand in 10 goals (7 goals, 3 assists) in his last 12 starts.
-
Only Jérémy Doku (39) has created more chances from open play than Everton’s Jack Grealish (36) in the Premier League this season. Grealish has also been fouled more often than any other player this term (52).