Our Everton jury have returned to have their say on the upcoming Premier League game against Arsenal and some of the decisions that David Moyes is facing
Jarrad Branthwaite
Jarrad Branthwaite (Image: (Richard Martin-Roberts - CameraSport via Getty Images))
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Everton return to Premier League action this weekend when they take on Arsenal in the Premier League. The Blues head to Emirates Stadium looking to make it three wins in a row and continue their fine form on the road.
David Moyes’ side were without a game at the weekend due to being knocked out of the FA Cup by Sunderland in the third round back in January. The Blues are currently five points behind fifth-placed Chelsea in the league table.
And with Saturday evening’s game against the Gunners in mind, our Everton have returned to have their say.
Paul McParlan
One of the unexpected outcomes of Donald Trump's Middle East offensive was that it curtailed Everton's plans to have a warm-weather training break in Abu Dhabi.
Instead, the team headed to he Quinta da Lago resort in the Algarve as they continued their preparations for the remaining nine games of the season, four of which are against teams in the top six.
The Algarve is nowhere near as warm as Abu Dhabi at this time of year. It was 15 degrees in Portugal yesterday compared to 28 over there, so let’s hope the trip was worthwhile.
Who would have suspected that decisions in the White House would have an impact on our European hopes? Of course, if we had managed to stay in the FA Cup instead of losing to Sunderland, we would not have needed this break.
The bigger concern is that Jarrad Branthwaite has stayed behind to focus on his individual workload and rehabilitation at Finch Farm. It was clear during the Burnley game that he was not 100% fit; the surprise was that he was not substituted earlier.
NEWCASTLE UPON TYNE, ENGLAND - FEBRUARY 28: James Tarkowski of Everton looks on, as Jarrad Branthwaite of Everton (obscured) scores his team's first goal during the Premier League match between Newcastle United and Everton at St James' Park on February 28, 2026 in Newcastle upon Tyne, England. (Photo by Stu Forster/Getty Images)
Jarrad Branthwaite heads Everton into the lead at Newcastle United(Image: Stu Forster/Getty Images)
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Jarrad has been a massive asset since he returned from injury in January, and we can ill afford to be without him with some key matches remaining. His training will need to be managed carefully to ensure he can feature in as many of these as possible. It is not just his defensive skills that we need but also his ability to bring the ball out of defence.
Arsenal away on Saturday is always a tough challenge, and Branthwaite will hopefully play a key role in dealing with the set-piece bombardment that they will launch at us. The Gunners are a side that apparently don’t want to score from open play, and that could work in our favour.
I can see another Moyes defensive masterclass grinding out a point here, and I would be delighted with that! The key may be to ensure that Arsenal don’t score the opening goal and then spend the rest of the encounter winding down the clock. If we can contain them, their crowd gets easily frustrated, and we can use that to our advantage.
Chances will be few and far between for Everton at the Emirates, so we have to show that we are not the only side who can score from set pieces. We will need to transition quickly from defence to counter-attack, and perhaps it may be worth considering bringing some pace into the side with, possibly, Tyrique George playing.
Finally, a word for our loyal away supporters who once again found the start time moved at incredibly short notice from 2pm on Sunday to 5.30pm on Saturday, making a return journey by train almost impossible. It is another example of how the TV companies treat travelling fans with utter contempt. Let’s hope we can reward their loyalty with a win!
Mark McParlan
It’s always a bit of a downer when there’s a weekend of football but Everton are not involved. The obvious blemish on this season, despite top-half league form, remains our early exits in the cups.
For God’s sake, Port Vale have made it to the quarter-finals of the FA Cup, beating Sunderland, who knocked us out. One of West Ham or Leeds will be playing a semi-final at Wembley. We lost in the League Cup to a team who have still amassed only 16 Premier League points. You actually lose interest in these competitions once Everton go out.
Another consequence is that this season has had very long gaps at times. At a time when most footballing discourse centres around excessive demand on players, Everton will have only played 41 matches in all competitions. Between March 4 and April 10, we play only twice.
James Tarkowski celebrates after scoring for Everton against Burnley
James Tarkowski celebrates after scoring for Everton against Burnley(Image: (Paul ELLIS / AFP via Getty Images))
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Unfortunately, with these next two being Arsenal and Chelsea, it’s entirely possible that we might not pick up any points, and if that is the case, I hope it doesn’t completely kill the momentum we’ve worked so hard for with these consecutive Premier League wins. We need everything for a push for seventh or eighth.
If we pick up points against the Londoners, it may be down to something which, in my opinion, has gone underappreciated this season – Everton have the third-best defensive record in the Premier League, only behind Arsenal and Man City.
It’s a foundation which keeps us competitive in most matches that we play. Jordan Pickford is in superb form, and Jarrad Branthwaite’s recovery helps James Tarkowski achieve his best performances. Wouldn’t it be great to spoil Arsenal’s fun on Saturday?
As an aside, how on earth did we contrive to lose 3-0 at home to this Tottenham team? Perhaps we can get Richarlison back in the summer after they go down.