Team news, stats and prediction ahead of Everton vs Aston Villa in the Premier League on Thursday (kick-off 6pm).
- Premier League restart: The live games on Sky Sports
- £18 Premier League and Football channel offer
- NOW TV Sky Sports Month Pass for £25 a month
Team news
Everton defender Mason Holgate is fit to face Aston Villa after a two-match injury absence. The centre-back will go straight into the side as Yerry Mina (thigh) is out.
Andre Gomes has recovered from an ankle injury which kept him out of Sunday's defeat at Wolves but fellow midfielder Fabian Delph (muscle) is still not ready having not featured since February.
Kortney Hause and Neil Taylor are expected to miss the trip to Goodison Park.
Centre-back Hause (rib) and full-back Taylor (hamstring) have been struggling to shake off their injury problems while Danny Drinkwater is out with a knock.
Bjorn Engels will miss the final three matches of the season with his Achilles problem and Tom Heaton and Wesley (both knee) are long-term injury victims.
How to follow
Everton vs Aston Villa is live on Sky Sports Action and Sky Sports Main Event from 5.30pm; Kick-off 6pm. Sky Sports customers can watch in-game clips in the live match blog on the Sky Sports website and app. Highlights will also be published on the Sky Sports digital platforms and the Sky Sports Football YouTube channel shortly after the final whistle.
- Learn more about Sky Sports Crowds, Recap, Fanzone
- Watch 39 Premier League & 45 EFL games exclusively live
Watch the Premier League live on Sky Sports
- Latest confirmed Premier League games live on Sky Sports
- Liverpool trophy lift to be live on Sky Sports on Wednesday July 22
- All matches on final weekend of Premier League season will kick off at 4pm on Sunday July 26
- In total, Sky Sports is showing 64 matches from the Premier League's restart - 39 exclusive to subscribers and an extra 25 available on Sky's free-to-air channel 'Pick'
- Get Sky Sports - £18 Premier League and Football channel offer
It's set to be an enthralling finish to the season and you can follow all the drama with Sky Sports as the battle for survival and the race for Europe reaches a climax.
Sky Sports has launched a host of innovative new features and updates to give fans an even more immersive experience and share the moments live with family and friends on virtual platforms.
You can also follow the action with our dedicated live blogs on the Sky Sports website and app, and watch free match highlights from every game shortly after full-time on our digital platforms and YouTube channel.
Charlie Nicholas' prediction
It was a great result for Aston Villa over Crystal Palace, but Bournemouth's result out of nowhere will have dampened Villa spirits. Bournemouth have been lifted, but Villa still have the better chance of avoiding relegation with games against Arsenal and West Ham after the trip to Goodison.
When was the last time Villa had an opportunity presented to them like this? Everton were awful against Wolves, they were ripped apart. Carlo Ancelotti is getting nothing from Gylfi Sigurdsson and Richarlison, and Dominic Calvert-Lewin is not scoring now either. The service to the frontmen - it is weird how things like this develop at Everton.
I would love Villa to stay up, it is a special place as it was when I played there in the 1980s. They had a winning mentality and I liked the style and energy. I look and say I would like to see them stay up, but they do not have enough.
Trezeguet turned up and nets two nice goals against Palace and they need to get that first goal against Everton. They have to play an adventurous team and make it awkward for the Toffees.
Ancelotti could well play the kids and see what happens. You cannot tell what will happen, but with the fighting spirit coming out of Villa and the state Everton are in, I think Villa could maybe get a point.
CHARLIE PREDICTS: 1-1 (11/2 with Sky Bet)
Opta stats
- Everton have won their last three home league games against Aston Villa, last winning more consecutively against them at Goodison Park between 1964-1975 (5).
- Aston Villa are looking to secure their first league double over Everton since 2000-01, following their 2-0 win at Villa Park in August.
- Everton vs Aston Villa is the most played fixture in English top-flight history, with the Villans winning 74 of the 203 previous meetings to Everton's 76 (53 draws).
- Everton vs Aston Villa will be the seventh Premier League fixture to have been played on all seven days of the week. Meanwhile, a win for the Villans will see them become the second team to beat an opponent on every day of the week in the competition (after Manchester United against Aston Villa).
- Everton are unbeaten in 10 Premier League home games (W5 D5); only Liverpool (58) are on a longer current such run, while it's the Toffees' longest run without defeat at Goodison Park since December 2016 (11).
- Aston Villa's win against Crystal Palace last time out ended a run of 10 Premier League games without a win; they've not won consecutive league games since October.
- Aston Villa are the only side without an away clean sheet in the Premier League this season. Overall, they've conceded in each of their last 24 Premier League away games - only five clubs have had a longer such run in the competition's history.