Everton and Romelu Lukaku get to shift their attention to the pitch, Liverpool face off with Manchester City, and Spurs look to push on without Harry Kane
Everton-owned strikers will provide two causes for regret at Goodison Park on Saturday. Hull City miss Oumar Niasse, the on-loan centre-forward whose goals against Swansea City last week have made escaping the drop a realistic proposition, as he is ineligible to face the club that froze him out within months of arriving from Lokomotiv Moscow. That is poor timing as Marco Silva looks to create some momentum but Everton have concerns of their own. Romelu Lukaku and his family are hardly known for reticence but his clearly voiced concerns about the club’s ambition, hot on the heels of rejecting a new contract, have rung alarm bells. The long-range view is that Lukaku is an outstanding talent who is within his rights to require that Everton kick on if he is not to seek the upgrade his ability merits; in the shorter term Ronald Koeman may need to work overtime in order to hold Lukaku’s gaze. A year ago to the weekend Lukaku, previously in electric form, began a goal drought that ran to the end of the season. It was widely held that he and Everton had cooled under Roberto Martínez; another drop-off now would put some very positive work to waste. NA
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