James Garner shared a positive update on his recovery but will not be available for the Chelsea match. Armando Broja will miss out while a late call will be made on Dwight McNeil
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Everton midfielder James Garner is making progress in his return from injury
Everton midfielder James Garner is making progress in his return from injury
James Garner is making progress as he seeks to overcome a back injury. The midfielder has been out of action since he picked up the injury during the October international break.
Everton manager Sean Dyche said Garner was taking strides forward as he provided an update in his pre-Chelsea press conference at Finch Farm on Friday. Then on Saturday Garner shared an image of himself with boots on, captioned with the comment: “Today is a good day.”
The injury is the 23-year-old’s second back problem since he joined the Blues in 2022. He missed just under six months of his opening season on Merseyside with his first.
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Like Tim Iroegbunam, another midfielder who also suffered injury during the October break, Garner is still expected to need time before he will be involved in the first team. Dyche said: “Jimmy and Tim are still a bit behind the curve, they are making progress though, so that is good.
“But that is not going to be quick progress at this stage but they are on the grass and just beginning to take soft steps back towards fitness.”
Dwight McNeil is a doubt for the visit of Chelsea on Sunday after he missed the Arsenal match with a knee issue. Dyche described the winger as “touch and go” and said the club and player were trying to be careful with his management of the problem, which is a re-aggravation of the knee injury that saw him miss the trip to West Ham United earlier in the season.
Everton’s broader injury picture has improved considerably from previous periods this season. Youssef Chermiti is yet to be involved with the first team since he suffered a nasty foot injury in pre-season but he has featured several times for the Under-21s across recent weeks and so is on the cusp of first-team contention.
Recovering alongside him was loan striker Armando Broja, who has since come off the bench against Wolverhampton Wanderers and Arsenal but will not be available on Sunday as Everton line up against his parent club.