Everton goalkeeper Jordan Pickford‘s potential involvement in their Premier League finale away to Newcastle United on Sunday is still up in the air.
Boyhood Sunderland fan Pickford is infamous for his disdain of their rivals Newcastle, but that has led to some mixed performances in the past, including being dropped for the fixture by Carlo Ancelotti.
Pickford was the hero in the reverse fixture though, saving an Anthony Gordon penalty at the Gwladys Street end in a 0-0 draw at Goodison Park, but there is a good chance he will be present at Sunderland’s Championship playoff final 24 hours earlier, putting his involvement in doubt.
Both Joao Virginia and Asmir Begovic are leaving the club at the end of the season, and one could get a farewell, after being sparsely used across their respective careers on Merseyside.
Abdoulaye Doucoure also announced he will depart the club this summer after five years in a blue shirt, and the impact the midfielder has had will never be forgotten.
Not only scoring the goal that kept them up on the final day in 2022-23, Everton also seemingly could not function without the Malian in the team, winning just four of the 41 games he missed across his tenure with the club, averaging a mere 0.68 points.
Doucoure broke down into tears when being replaced during Goodison Park’s farewell fixture last weekend, and that may well have been his last game for the club.
Jarrad Branthwaite has also played his last game of the season, as the young defender was forced off with a hamstring injury in the second half against Southampton, now joining vice-captain James Tarkowski on the sidelines with the same issue.
Club captain Seamus Coleman also picked up an issue last weekend in what could be a sad ending to a great career, as a thigh strain forced the Irishman off inside 20 minutes.
Elsewhere on the injury list, loanees Orel Mangala and Jesper Lindstrom will both be absent once again with setbacks that have kept them out for a while, and ended their respective seasons.
Everton possible starting lineup:
Joao Virginia; Young, O’Brien, Keane, Mykolenko; Alcaraz, Gueye, Garner, McNeil, Ndiaye; Beto
Click here to see how Newcastle could line up on the final day.
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