Everton will face Liverpool in the final league Merseyside derby game at Goodison Park on Saturday.
The Toffees are heading into this fixture on the back of a 4-0 win against Wolverhampton Wanderers, but they face a massive challenge against Liverpool, who are not only leading the Premier League table by seven points but have also lost only once thus far.
In a high-octane derby clash, Chris Sutton thinks that Everton could make life difficult for the Reds, and they are likely to go direct in terms of attack, but Liverpool have enough quality to see off the challenge.
The BBC Sports pundit has predicted a 2-1 victory for Liverpool.
Sutton said: “Everton come into this game in better form following their win over Wolves, which was a huge result for Toffees boss Sean Dyche after the run they were on.
“They can definitely make things difficult for Liverpool, and I suspect they will be fairly direct when they attack, but Arne Slot’s side should have too much quality for them.”
Everton v Liverpool – big game for both sides
Liverpool will be looking to return to winning ways after securing a 3-3 draw against Newcastle United on Wednesday at St James’ Park.
The Reds are missing a few key players ahead of this game. Alexis MacAllister is suspended, while Ibrahima Konate, Kostas Tsimikas, Alisson Becker, Diogo Jota and Federico Chiesa are all out injured.
Slot needs to make a bold decision on whether to drop Darwin Nunez after a poor performance in midweek, while Trent Alexander-Arnold is likely to come into the side in place of Jarrell Quansah.
Sean Dyche has been heavily impressed by Armando Broja in training, but he is probably not fit yet to start a high-intensity Premier League game.
Broja, who joined from Chelsea in the summer on loan, played a cameo role against Wolves in the previous game and did really well.
Read more: Everton predicted starting line-up v Liverpool.