Everton’s injury woes are piling up as they prepare for next week’s highly anticipated Merseyside derby.
The Toffees are set to host Liverpool at Goodison Park for the final time on Wednesday night before moving to their new Bramley Dock Stadium next season. However, Everton’s preparations for the match have been disrupted by a string of injury setbacks in recent weeks.
Vitalii Mykolenko and Nathan Patterson added to the growing list of concerns over the weekend, as both full-backs missed the FA Cup defeat to Bournemouth due to knocks.
“It was only Myko felt his calf this morning when I saw him,” David Moyes explained after the game. “We had the chance we could change it and it was easy enough yet. I have no idea yet of the outcome but he just felt it a bit tight.”
Regarding Patterson, Moyes added: “He felt his hamstring in training. That’s why he wasn’t here, he had a tight hamstring. I would think Wednesday would be too soon for him probably.”
Mykolenko’s potential absence would be a significant blow for Everton, as the left-back has started all of the last 16 Premier League matches and 21 of the club’s 23 games this season. Patterson, while less of a regular starter, has featured off the bench in the last three league matches.
In the absence of the duo, Jake O’Brien and Ashley Young were deployed in the full-back positions against Bournemouth, where Antoine Semenyo and Daniel Jebbison scored the goals that secured Bournemouth’s fourth-round victory.
With Everton now nine points clear of the relegation zone under Moyes, who has guided the team to three consecutive Premier League wins, the Toffees have little left to fight for in the coming months.
Compounding their issues, Everton is also grappling with a shortage of available strikers. Dominic Calvert-Lewin, Armando Broja, and Youssef Chermiti are all expected to miss the Liverpool clash.
Dwight McNeil, who recently underwent knee surgery, and long-term absentee Orel Mangala will also be unavailable. Seamus Coleman remains a doubt for the derby due to an ongoing calf problem.
On the Liverpool side, the primary injury concern revolves around Trent Alexander-Arnold. The right-back sustained a thigh injury during last week’s match against Bournemouth and subsequently missed the Carabao Cup victory over Tottenham Hotspur in midweek.
Alexander-Arnold will also sit out the FA Cup trip to Plymouth Argyle, and manager Arne Slot admitted on Friday that it’s uncertain whether he will recover in time for the Everton game. “Difficult to say. Like I said before, it’s not going to take months, and not even weeks, but that’s only three days after the Plymouth Argyle game, so let’s wait and see if he’s available.”
“We also have to look at long-term, we don’t want to take risks with so many games afterwards, but if he’s fit, then of course we will use him.”
Tyler Morton is the only other injury concern for Liverpool, with the squad otherwise appearing in strong shape as they head into the final stretch of the season.
