Everton defender John Stones. (Photo : Getty Images)
Middling squads Everton FC (9-11-14, 41 points) and AFC Bournemouth (11-16-8, 41 points) are set to square off with one another at the Goodison Park on Saturday, April 30th for a 2015-2016 Premier League season encounter.
The two teams are presently tied on points in the English top flight's overall standings, but the former has a superior goal differential of +5 as compared to the latter's -19. Both teams are only 10 points above the bottom three relegation zone with Everton having four games left in this season's campaign while Bournemouth only has three games.
A 10-man Everton squad was crushed by contending squad Liverpool FC, 0-4, at the Anfield on April 20th as the team extended their winless skid to six games, as per SkySports.
Four different players scored for the hosts that day, namely Divock Origi, Mamadou Sakho, Daniel Sturridge, and Philippe Coutinho at the 43rd, 45th+2, 61st, and 76th minutes, to hand the reeling squad their third loss in six matches.
Things were not going well for head coach Roberto Martínez's side since the start of the game as the Reds went out with a two-point lead at halftime. However, it went from bad to worse when defender Ramiro Funes Mori was sent off at the 50th minute after he was given a straight red card for fouling Origi.
It was all downhill for the Toffees from that point on as they were unable to respond with any goals on the road against Liverpool.
Meanwhile, last season's Football League Championship winners Bournemouth was also ripped apart by dethroned champions Chelsea FC, 1-4, at their own home ground of Vitality Stadium last Saturday, via ESPN.
Former Barcelona forward Pedro opened the scoring at the fifth minute before midfielder Eden Hazard finally scored his first goal of the season for the Blues, giving them a two-point advantage at the 34th minute.
Bournemouth captain Tommy Elphick managed to trim the gap to one two minutes later with a high-leaping header.
However, the visitors netted two more goals, courtesy of Willian at the 71st and Hazard's second goal in stoppage to hand the Cherries their fourth loss in five outings.
The predicted result is a close 2-1 win for Everton.
Everton starting lineup (4-2-3-1 formation): Joel; Oviedo, Stones, Jagielka, Baines; McCarthy, Barry; Mirallas, Barkley, Lennon; Lukaku
Bournemouth starting lineup (4-4-2 formation): Boruc; Francis, Elphick, Cook, Daniels; Stanislas, Surman, Gosling, Pugh; Grabban, King
