Kick-off: 1500, 18/02/2023
Stadium: Goodison Park
Everton host Leeds in what promises to be a crunch Premier League relegation battle and sparks could fly at Goodison Park.
The Toffees will appeal to many with home advantage, but we were impressed by the Whites over two recent meetings with Manchester United and prefer their chances.
Punters can get 39/20 for an away victory and that is our first Everton vs Leeds prediction.
Everton Odds
Sean Dyche made an instant impact on Everton when a 1-0 victory over Arsenal at this venue ended a 10-match winless run in all competitions.
However, the former Burnley manager’s honeymoon period didn’t last long, as a 2-0 derby defeat at Liverpool brought them back down to earth.
The Toffees started out brightly enough at Anfield but the game changed when James Tarkowski hit the woodwork and then Mohamed Salah struck on the counter-attack.
Cody Gakpo added a second early on in the second half and the Reds could have increased their advantage via several dangerous breaks.
Dyche said: “Our shape was good but then it changed in 15 or 16 seconds. We hit the post and didn’t react as quick.
“We know Liverpool are good in the transition phase and we conceded a goal without needing to.
“At half-time, we said we had to use the ball better but then if you give away another goal so quickly it is very difficult, especially here.
“We kept plugging away but there were too many sloppy passes and too many turnovers.”
Leeds will look to unsettle their hosts with a high press and Everton will need to be more comfortable on the ball if they are to cope.
Looking at the Everton vs Leeds odds, we reckon 17/5 for an away win by any one-goal margin is another tempting price.
Last Everton line-up: Pickford, Tarkowski, Mykolenko, Coleman, Coady, McNeil, Onana, Doucoure, Iwobi, Gueye, Simms.
Leeds Odds
Fourth-from-bottom Leeds are just a point better off than their hosts after gong nine league games without a win.
However, the Whites reacted positively to the dismissal of manager Jesse Marsh when giving the Red Devils a couple of tough work-outs.
The Yorkshire outfit led 2-0 at Old Trafford before having to settle for a share of the spoils under caretaker boss Michael Skubala.
A quick rematch at Elland Road was just as keenly contested and could have gone either way until Marcus Rashford and Alejandro Garnacho produced two moments of class late on.
Stand-in skipper Luke Ayling told LUTV: “We played really well for 80 minutes there and we gave it our all.
“We had some big chances, in the second half especially I think, and they’re the moments that change games.”
The full-back added: “Skubes and his staff have been brilliant. Our team effort and stats show that and we’ll keep plugging along until things change.
“In what’s been a tricky week for the club, we’ve stuck together and played really well in these two games.”
That is a fair assessment in our book and Leeds looked back to something like their energetic best when Marcelo Bielsa was in charge.
New signings Max Wober, Weston McKinnie and Georginio Rutter have already shown enough to suggest they can make a big difference.
If the Whites can maintain the same work rate, they could wear down the Toffees here, so 21/4 for Draw HT/Leeds FT is added to our Everton vs Leeds betting tips.
Last Leeds line-up: Meslier, Ayling, Junior Firpo, Koch, Wober, Summerville, Harrison, Adams, McKennie, Gnonto, Bamford.
Additional stats
[jsEntainMatchAnalytics match_id=”300507″]
[jsEntainMatchHead2Head match_id=”300507″]
Join bwin today and receive up to £20 money back as a FreeBet if your first wager (3+ selections at odds of 1/2 (1.5) or greater) is a loser! Terms and conditions apply.
