Everton, along with Arsenal, Chelsea, and Liverpool, are still one of the six teams that have fought back after being relegated of late. Since the Premier League’s start in 1992, Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur have never been demoted, narrowly escaping the drop on the last day of the previous campaign.
After succeeding Frank Lampard as manager in January, the Toffees finished 17th and two points above the bottom three in May thanks to a sensational Abdoulaye Doucoure goal. Sean Dyche successfully led the team to safety.
Eleven weeks after their Goodison Park victory on the last day, Dyche is gearing up his team for the season’s opening match against Fulham in an effort to steer clear of another painful relegation struggle. This is Dyche’s first full season in command of Everton. But if they don’t strengthen their roster by the transfer deadline next month, it may be difficult.
In fact, the cash-strapped Toffees have only added Arnaut Danjuma on loan and 38-year-old Ashley Young during the transfer window while observing a number of their Premier League opponents bolster in a variety of areas. However, at the time of writing, teenage forward Youssef Chermiti is nearly ready to make a commitment to the blue side of Merseyside.
Dyche’s team thoroughly enjoyed an undefeated preseason, winning four and drawing two of their six friendlies, including a narrow 1-0 home win over Sporting Lisbon last weekend thanks to a first-half goal from Dominic Calvert-Lewin. Everton enters the new season with a smaller squad than the one that avoided the drop last season.
Everton has only lost one of its past 11 opening games in a Premier League season, but they have lost both of their last home games against the Cottagers, giving up five goals in the process.
Fulham hopes to continue their remarkable season in the Premier League last year when they defied projections with a top-10 finish a year after winning the Championship.
Although the preseason for Marco Silva’s team has been somewhat fragmented this summer, it has been mostly because of the ambiguity surrounding the futures of the crucial offensive combination Aleksandar Mitrovic and Willian owing to interest from Saudi Arabian teams.
Raul Jimenez and Calvin Bassey, the club’s only two summer signings to date, scored goals as Fulham defeated German club Hoffenheim 2-1 last weekend after winning one and losing two of their three preseason friendlies in the first Premier League Summer Series in the USA.
Fulham has a bad record of getting off to a sluggish start in league play; in their past eight opening-weekend games, they have only won one, and in their last three Premier League games, they have lost all three.
Although the Cottagers’ record of three victories in their past five Premier League games with the Toffees augurs well for the match on Saturday, they have lost their only two past encounters with Everton in the very first match of a top-flight campaign.