Everton fell to a crushing defeat against Liverpool at the weekend, but it’s West Ham United up next for the Toffees and there’s no time to wallow in self-pity.
Virgil van Dijk’s last-gasp header at Hill Dickinson Stadium was a real sickener for Everton, and all but rules out Champions League football.
Everton fans, how do you feel about our European football prospects now with five games to go? 🤔
The defeat to Liverpool was a sickener, but we're still right in the mix! 🙏
Iliman Ndiaye of Everton reacts during the Premier League match between Everton and Liverpool.
Credit: Getty Images/Molly Darlington
But there is still every chance Everton can play in the Europa League or Conference League next term, with the league table extremely tight.
The Toffees are 10th, but just a point behind sixth-placed Chelsea.
Up next is West Ham at London Stadium, which is simply a massive game.
And Jamie Carragher has made an early prediction ahead of the game.
Jamie Carragher predicts West Ham vs Everton
Last night, West Ham drew with Crystal Palace in the Monday night game.
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The point was decent for them, and they’re now two clear of the relegation zone.
The relegation battle was the focus after the game, and pundits Jamie Carragher and Dean Ashton both predicted the results of West Ham’s final five games
Jamie Carragher looks on.
Photo by James Baylis – AMA/Getty Images
And Carragher reckons this weekend’s game between West Ham and Everton will end in a draw.
He said: “David Moyes, he knows the club, he knows that stadium, he’ll know most of the players. Moyes just gets results, he went to Brentford and got a little draw. I can just see them making it difficult
“He knows his way around the Premier League as obviously Nuno does as well. But going back to West Ham, knowing the club the setup and everything about it, I think they’ll be able to come away with a point.”
This, of course, would actually be a damaging result for Everton, as they seek to bounce back from the defeat to Liverpool and get their European hunt back on track.
It is undoubtedly a game Everton need to be winning, especially with West Ham having been languishing down at the bottom all season.
The likes of Brentford, Bournemouth, Sunderland and Brighton are all in good form, so to slip up on Saturday would not be ideal.
How Everton have fared against West Ham recently
Everton need to get out of a recent habit against West Ham.
The Toffees and the Hammers’ last three meetings have ended in a draw, with West Ham winning the last game before that run, 3-1 at Goodison Park.
Everton and West Ham all time head-to head
Meetings – 154
Everton wins – 75
Draws – 34
West Ham wins – 45
Everton’s last league victory against West Ham came in October 2023, with Dominic Calvert-Lewin scoring the game’s only goal at London Stadium.
Dropping points doesn’t bear thinking about. David Moyes won’t need to stress the importance and magnitude of this game to the players, and hopefully they will deliver, as they so often have on the road this season.
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