Everton and Arsenal are both expected to be somewhere near the top of the table come the end of the season, though neither found their opening Premier League game as easy as anticipated. Arsenal scraped past a plucky Crystal Palace 2-1, while Everton could only draw 2-2 with newly-promoted Leicester City. That makes their meeting at Goodison Park on Saturday all the more unpredictable, as both sides look to iron out the flaws they didn’t get around to in pre-season.
Everton vs. Arsenal: Preview and TV schedule
Arsenal have a tough game away at Everton in Saturday’s late kickoff.
Key player - Romelu Lukaku (Everton)
Everton’s marquee summer signing was that of Romelu Lukaku, who set the Toffees back a club-record fee of £28 million. However, the Belgian international struggled in the World Cup and failed to impress last week. Despite his impressive goalscoring record, he’s still got work to do to establish himself as one of the league’s best. Having said that, If he finds his form against Arsenal, their notoriously shaky defence could struggle to contain the powerful attacker.
Key matchup - Alexis Sánchez vs. Leighton Baines
When Alexis Sánchez arrived at Arsenal from Barcelona in the summer, no one quite knew whether Arsène Wenger planned on playing him through the middle or in his more natural position on the right wing. So far, he’s opted for the latter, meaning the Chilean will come up against the attack-minded -- and defensively suspect -- Everton left-back Leighton Baines in this match. If Sánchez can find space in behind the England international, he could do serious damage.
Everton injuries and suspensions
Out: Arouna Koné, Ross Barkley (knee), Bryan Oviedo (broken leg). In doubt: None.
Arsenal injuries and suspensions
Out: David Ospina (thigh), Theo Walcott, Serge Gnabry (knee), Kieran Gibbs (hamstring), Mikel Arteta (unspecified). In doubt: Laurent Koscielny (achilles), Mesut Özil, Per Mertesacker, Lukas Podolski (fitness), Yaya Sanogo (unspecified).
Everton are still without the long-term injured Arouna Koné and Bryan Oviedo, as well as wonderkid Ross Barkley. However, their injury list is nowhere near as long as Arsenal’s, with the Gunners still without David Ospina, Theo Walcott, Serge Gnabry, Kieran Gibbs and Mikel Arteta, and several others facing late fitness tests.
Match Date/Time: Saturday, 5:30 p.m. local, 12:30 p.m. ET
Venue: Goodison Park, Liverpool, England
TV: NBC, Mun2 (U.S.), TSN, RDS (Canada), Sky Sports 1/HD (U.K.)
Online: NBC Sports Live Extra (U.S. - English), Deportes Telemundo En Vivo (U.S. - Spanish), TSN Go (Canada), Sky Go (U.K.)
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