Everton braced to welcome back four players for Crystal Palace clash

Sean Dyche will be hoping land a quadruple boost as Everton go in search of their first Premier League victory of the season against Crystal Palace on Saturday.

The Toffees have just one point after five fixtures so far - leaving them rooted to the bottom of the table. As a result, pressure has been placed on manager Dyche from sections of supporters.

The Blues earned their maiden point after a 1-1 draw against Leicester City last weekend. There may have been mixed emotions at the full-time whistle as for a third successive game, Everton surrendered advantage. Iliman Ndiaye gave the visitors the lead inside 12 minutes at the King Power Stadium but that cancelled out by Stephy Mavididi’s strike for the Foxes after the break.

Yet there were mitigating circumstances for the Toffees, with Dyche’s plans decimated in the build-up to the game. Illness and injury meant the Goodison Park supremo required a sheet of paper to list the outs and doubts for the game.

Among those who were absent included Vitalii Mykolenko through illness, having been forced off in the first half of the 3-2 win at Aston Villa. However, it is likely that the Ukrainian left-back will be back available for the visit of Palace to L4.

Meanwhile, Idrissa Gana Gueye had to miss the Leicester encounter. The experienced midfielder was unavailable following a family bereavement. Everton will give Gueye as much time as possible but he’s another who could be back.

And 24 hours after the Leicester stalemate, Everton were handed the biggest fillip. Jarrad Branthwaite’s breakthrough 2023-24 campaign was magnificent and he progressed how not too many expected. The centre-back made a total of 41 appearances, scoring three goals and was voted Young Player and Players’ Player of the Season. It was no surprise he was targeted by Manchester United in the summer transfer window but Everton were steadfast the 22-year-old would not be sold unless their asking price was met.

Branthwaite had minor surgery at the start of the summer and had a couple of setbacks in his recovery. It’s why he has missed the opening month of the campaign but got 90 minutes under his belt for the under-21s in a 4-3 win over Sunderland at Southport’s Haig Avenue. Dyche will now be weighing up whether to restore the ex-Carlisle defender to his starting line-up against Palace, with Everton shipping 14 goals so far.

In truth, a place on the bench for Nathan Patterson is most likely. The right-back also featured for the under-21s as he made his first appearance for more than five months following hamstring surgery. Patterson managed an hour of action, with the Blues being cautious given the severity of his issue.

In a week that it was announced that the Friedkin Group have come to an agreement to purchase Everton from Farhad Moshiri, supporters will want more of a feel-good factor with a first triumph of the campaign - and Dyche’s options have a chance of being augmented.