Everton predicted lineup vs Hull City - FA Cup
Everton travel to second tier Hull City's MKM Stadium for the third round of the FA Cup on Saturday afternoon.
Paul Rideout's goal half an hour into the 1995 final secured Everton's last triumph in the competition - and the club's most recent major trophy. While it's painful enough to realise that their current manager Rafael Benitez has won the tournament with their city rivals in the intervening 27 years, Everton's Championship opponents Hull have been in the final more recently than the Toffees.
Here's the XI Benitez may select to bust his side's slump.
Everton predicted lineup vs Hull City - FA Cup
1. Goalkeeper & defenders
Asmir Begovic (GK) - Nikica Jelavic (once of the Everton parish as well) is the only Hull player to score against the Toffees' cup goalie in his four career meetings with City, keeping three clean sheets.
Mason Holgate (CB) - So favoured by Carlo Ancelotti, Holgate was handed a five-year contract extension under the Italian coach - opportunities have been considerably scarcer under his successor.
Michael Keane (CB) - Everton's flawed but reliably fit centre back is the only player to have featured in every game under Benitez.
Ben Godfrey (CB) - This season alone, Everton's ever-versatile 23-year-old has played six different positions across the hodgepodge of Benitez's varied defensive systems.
2. Midfielders & wing-backs
Jonjoe Kenny (RWB) - The Liverpool-born full-back is a client of the agency ironically named 11WINS considering Kenny hasn't featured in a Premier League victory since 2020.
Andre Gomes (CM) - A winner of three domestic cup competitions with Benfica and Barcelona, Gomes didn't start the final of any of those triumphs.
Jean-Philippe Gbamin (CM) - Everton's invisible man has played a grand total of 300 competitive minutes since joining the Toffees all the way back in the summer of 2019, but may add to that shallow tally for rotation purposes.
Vitaliy Mykolenko (LWB) - 'Desire and commitment' are the two qualities Everton's first signing of the January transfer window ranks among his most important - though the Toffee faithful may hope Benitez has splashed £17m on a full-back with more tangible attributes as well, defending competently chief among them.
3. Forwards
Anthony Gordon (RW) - A brace in vain at home to Brighton two days into 2022 saw Gordon become the first Everton player since Romelu Lukaku (who isn't exactly having the best time at the moment either) in 2016 to lose a Premier League match despite scoring twice.
Salomon Rondon (ST) - A player, fairly or not, cast as the symbol of Benitez's struggles on the blue half of Stanley Park may be afforded another run out for fear of overworking the recently returned Dominic Calvert-Lewin.
Demarai Gray (LW) - The £1.7m summer arrival's goals have earned 37% of the Premier League points Everton have won this season (seven out of 19).