Overview
Burnley once closed October with positive signals after winning 2 matches in a row for the first time this season. However, the period from then until now has been a series of disappointing days.
Scott Parker's team fell into a 7-match losing streak, almost extending to 8 matches when they were led by Bournemouth by Antoine Semenyo in the middle of the second half of the previous round. It was not until the last minute of official time that Armando Broja managed to equalize, bringing back 1 valuable point.
Currently 7 points behind 17th place Nottingham Forest, Burnley is the most disappointing team in the rookie group. They are facing a big challenge to avoid the prospect of relegation immediately.
However, the history of head-to-head matches partly brings support as Burnley has more wins against Everton in the Premier League than any other opponent. However, recent form does not support them. Burnley has lost 3 of their last 3 matches and 4 of their last 5 matches.
Home ground was the foundation in the promotion campaign last season when Burnley was unbeaten, but this season it became a problem. 5 defeats in 8 home matches made them own one of the worst achievements in the league. The root cause lies in attacking efficiency when Burnley has only scored 7 home goals, the fewest in the Premier League (same as Wolves).
In the opposite direction, Everton has just gone through 2 difficult matches when continuously facing Chelsea and Arsenal. Despite being empty-handed, David Moyes' team still shows a relatively positive face. Everton will celebrate Christmas in the top half for the first time since 2020. However, the only 2-point gap between them and Bournemouth in 15th place shows that the race is so close that a result could change the situation.
Everton aims for their first victory against a newcomer this season after losing to Leeds 0-1 and drawing 1-1 with Sunderland in previous encounters. In the context of lacking some key players, they need the remaining factors to increase their contributions to maintain their journey back to the continental arena after 7 years of absence.
Regarding scoring trends, Everton is also like Burnley when they often accelerate at the end of the match. They scored 5/18 goals in the last 15 minutes. This could become a weapon when Burnley proved fragile in that period, conceding 10/34 goals in the last 15 minutes of the match.
Personnel situation
Burnley continues to face the personnel problem before welcoming Everton. Jordan Beyer has suffered a hamstring injury since August and has not yet made any appearances in the current season. Connor Roberts has an Achilles tendon problem, while Maxime Esteve leaves his ability to play uncertain due to a minor injury.
In midfield, Zeki Amdouni is still in the recovery process and cannot return. Besides, Burnley also does not have Hannibal Mejbri, Axel Tuanzebe and Lyle Foster due to participating in AFCON. Mejbri, even if he does not participate in the tournament, he will still be absent because he is serving a 4-match suspension after spitting at Leeds United fans in August.
Everton is also affected by international obligations, when Idrissa Gueye and Iliman Ndiaye are playing for Senegal at AFCON. Regarding injuries, Jarrad Branthwaite, Seamus Coleman and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall all have hamstring problems and cannot participate.
In attack, Beto recently lost his starting spot to Thierno Barry, but is still likely to be given the opportunity to return to the starting lineup this weekend.
Expected lineup:
Dubravka, Ekdal, Worrall, Laurent, Walker, Ugochukwu, Cullen, Pires, Bruun Larsen, Broja, Anthony.
Pickford, Mykolenko, Keane, Tarkowski, O'Brien, Garner, Iroegbunam, Grealish, Alcaraz, McNeil, Barry.
The match between Burnley and Everton takes place at 10:00 PM on December 27th (Vietnam time).
