On the hunt for a fourth successive Premier League victory, Everton travel to Lancashire to meet fellow relegation candidates Burnley on Saturday evening, where Sean Dyche will be welcomed back for a Turf Moor homecoming.
The Toffees extended their winning streak by sinking Chelsea 2-0 last time out, while Vincent Kompany's men picked up a creditable point away to Brighton & Hove Albion in a 1-1 draw.
Match preview
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Thanks in no small part to an exemplary display from James Trafford in between the posts, Burnley put another dent in Brighton's European aspirations while avoiding defeat for just the fourth time in the current Premier League season last weekend, walking away from the Amex with a slice of the spoils.
Wilson Odobert broke the deadlock on the stroke of half time before Simon Adingra found the back of the net from Pascal Gross's header to restore parity for Brighton, who were their own worst enemies as 90 minutes of wastefulness prevented them from converting one point into three.
However, Trafford more than played his part with an astounding 10 saves - including a wonderful acrobatic stop to deny Kaoru Mitoma an injury-time winner - and Kompany unsurprisingly waxed lyrical about his number one after stopping the Seagulls in their tracks.
Whether that point at the Amex will prove to be a priceless one remains to be seen, but with Sheffield United overcoming Brentford in gameweek 16, the 19th-placed Clarets are only off the foot of the table by virtue of goal difference and are five points adrift of safety as things stand.
After ending a humiliating and history-making seven-game losing run at Turf Moor by crushing Sheffield United 5-0 a fortnight ago. Burnley could now achieve back-to-back top-flight home successes for the first time since April 2022, and it would not hurt the hosts to take a leaf out of Everton's defensive book.
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Happily ceding 72% of the ball to Chelsea during last weekend's Goodison Park encounter, Everton comfortably quelled the Blues' futile attacks and marched to their third consecutive Premier League win courtesy of two second-half strikes in front of the home faithful.
Abdoulaye Doucoure and Lewis Dobbin were both on target as Everton continued to walk in a winter wonderland, having also overcome Nottingham Forest and Newcastle United without conceding since the start of December, thereby ensuring a safe position at the close of this weekend's action.
Indeed, the 17th-placed Toffees are four points better off than 18th-placed Luton Town and will therefore remain above the dotted line regardless of what happens elsewhere in gameweek 17, where Dyche could lead the visitors to four successive Premier League wins for the first time since December 2020 during the Carlo Ancelotti reign.
Everton have to go even further back to November 2002 for the last time that they won four Premier League games without conceding a single goal, and since the 2023-24 season commenced, the Toffees have only fallen short away from home against Aston Villa and bitter rivals Liverpool.
Also rejoicing in a three-game winning streak on their travels, Everton trek to Burnley one-and-a-half months on from a 3-0 EFL Cup beating of the Clarets, but the Toffees have only won one of their last six matches with the hosts at Turf Moor, subjecting Dyche to a 5-1 crushing on Boxing Day 2018.
Team News
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With 66 minutes played in Burnley's clash with Brighton, left-back Charlie Taylor picked up a needless yellow card for time-wasting - his fifth of the season - meaning that the 30-year-old is set to serve a one-game ban at Turf Moor.
Kompany is devoid of natural left-backs to deputise for Taylor, so Charlie Roberts - a right-back by trade - will most likely be called upon to reinforce the backline, while Aaron Ramsey took a whack to the knee 21 minutes after coming on at the Amex and will need assessing in the coming hours.
Josh Cullen is also on the hosts' touch-and-go list owing to a knock, while Jack Cork (calf) and Luca Koleosho (knee) are out alongside Lyle Foster, who continues to receive help for mental health problems.
Taylor was not the only man to fall foul of the rule book last weekend, as Everton pair Jarrad Branthwaite and Idrissa Gueye were cautioned for the fifth time this term against Chelsea and must also suspensions on Saturday.
Ashley Young is also sidelined with the niggle he picked up in that game, and with Seamus Coleman absent too, Nathan Patterson will be expected to come into the Toffees' backline.
Branthwaite's ban could lead to Michael Keane and James Tarkowski comprising a central pairing of two former Burnley players, and Dyche confirmed at his pre-game press conference that the former should be back in contention after missing the Chelsea win with a knock; Ben Godfrey is on standby either way.
Gueye's position at the base of the engine room should also be taken by Amadou Onana - keen to win his rightful place in the team back - while Andre Gomes (fitness) and Dele Alli (groin) remain absent.
Burnley possible starting lineup:
Trafford; Vitinho, O'Shea, Beyer, Roberts; Gudmundsson, Brownhill, Berge, Odobert; Amdouni, Rodriguez
Everton possible starting lineup:
Pickford; Patterson, Tarkowski, Keane, Mykolenko; Harrison, Garner, Onana, McNeil; Doucoure; Calvert-Lewin
We say: Burnley 0-1 Everton
Only an inspirational display from Trafford allowed Burnley to come away from Brighton's turf with a point in the bag last weekend, but Kompany can take confidence from the goalkeeper's blinder as the Clarets aim to avoid reverting to old ways at Turf Moor.
A handful of enforced changes on Everton's end will not aid Dyche's efforts to get one over his old club either, but the Toffees have been the epitome of defensive solidity in recent weeks and have shown enough offensive verve to suggest that their winning sequence will continue this weekend.
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