Aston Villa will soon find themselves in Champions League action and they will look to record another win over Everton as they prepare for their opening night on the big stage.
Unai Emery’s squad will be tested on four fronts this season thanks to their success last season, and they travel to Switzerland to face Young Boys in midweek.
Before that trip, they will hope to secure their first home win of the season against struggling Everton.
Team news
Emery may opt for some squad rotation ahead of their European exploits, but that may not come until the latter stages of the game.
Jaden Philogene and Diego Carlos will hope to return to the squad after recovering from injury, but Matty Cash and Leon Bailey are sidelined.
Tyrone Mings and Boubacar Kamara are still working on their fitness as they recover from long-term injuries.
Everton’s new loan signing, Orel Mangala, will hope to make his Toffees debut, but fellow new recruit Armando Broja is set to miss the next few weeks.
Toffees captain Seamus Coleman is a doubt after suffering an injury on international duty with the Republic of Ireland, while Jarrad Branthwaite and Nathan Patterson are unavailable due to
The stats
Villa have won two of their three league games to sit seventh in the table, while Everton are one of only two teams, alongside Southampton, to have zero points from their opening three matches.
Villa’s two league wins have both been 2-1 scorelines on the road, while Everton have conceded 10 goals in their three matches, scoring just two in response.
Sean Dyche’s side held a 2-0 lead until the 87th minute against Bournemouth, only to lose 3-2 at Goodison Park last time out.
The two sides met three times in all competitions last season, with both teams winning one match each at Villa Park — Everton winning 2-1 in the Carabao Cup, while the most recent meeting in January finished goalless at Goodison Park.