Everton will look to head into their winter break with another three points on the board when they host Crystal Palace at Goodison Park on Saturday lunchtime.
The Toffees come into the clash against Roy Hodgson’s men on the back of a four-match unbeaten run in the Premier League – two wins and two draws.
One of those victories came against Watford last week as they produced a memorable comeback to win 3-2 having been 2-0 down at one stage in the first half.
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The Merseyside outfit have risen up the table in recent weeks under Carlo Ancelotti, and could finish the weekend in seventh should they win and other results go their way – not bad for a team who were lying in the relegation zone when Marco Silva was sacked at the start of December.
Here, FFC takes a look at the bold starting XI the Italian manager should pick against the Eagles…
The Everton back five is pretty settled now and while their defensive record this season isn’t great – they have conceded 37 times in their 25 top flight matches – there is no point moving away from Jordan Pickford, Lucas Digne, Yerry Mina, Mason Holgate and Djibril Sidibe here.
Indeed, Mina scored twice in the win against the Hornets, while Sidibe probably produced one of his best performances in a blue shirt at Vicarage Road.
Ancelotti’s main decision comes in midfield, with Fabian Delph suspended following his red card against Watford last time out.
The 60-year-old doesn’t exactly have a plethora of options to choose from in the centre, and that is why he should make the bold choice to play Alex Iwobi in the centre with the more defensively-minded Morgan Schneiderlin.
Iwobi played on the left against Nigel Pearson’s side but has previously said that he prefers to play through the middle – this would be brave and attacking, but worth trying at home against a team who may well sit deep and then counter.
Did he really play for us?! No Everton fan has managed to name all of these obscure Toffees players….
Theo Walcott starts on the right following his winner against Watford, while Ancelotti should opt to hand 18-year-old Anthony Gordon a first start in an Everton shirt in Iwobi’s place on the left.
Up top, Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Richarlison should continue their fruitful partnership that has produced 22 goals between them.
In other Everton news, Sky Sports pundit Charlie Nicholas has ripped into one Toffees player ahead of the Crystal Palace clash…