Ronald Koeman took over as Everton manager in the summer, replacing the sacked Roberto Martinez, and the Toffees are already reaping the rewards from the Dutchman’s appointment.
Koeman’s side have won four of their opening seven matches, including comfortable victories over Sunderland and Middlesbrough, and lost just one of their other three league games.
One key difference between this Everton side and Martinez’s one is the defensive solidarity. Martinez’s men conceded 55 goals last season, while Koeman’s Everton have conceded just five in their first seven matches.
Despite their good start, their Merseyside rivals Liverpool currently sit above Koeman’s side in the table, having won one more match than the Toffees.
However, there are a few Everton players that would strengthen the Liverpool side and perhaps make them genuine title contenders – here are THREE that would do just that…
Ashley Williams
Photo: Paul Roberts / Offside.
For as good as Liverpool are going forward, they do have concerns at the back.
Dejan Lovren and Joel Matip are decent centre-backs, but neither of them are as good as Everton’s Ashley Williams.
Proven at Premier League level with Swansea City, the Wales captain has easily made the transition to Goodison Park, and him and Phil Jagielka appear to be forging a strong partnership at the back for the Toffees.
Williams would definitely get into the Liverpool first team, and go some way to solidifying their backline.
Idrissa Gueye
Photo: Paul Roberts / Offside.
Idrissa Gueye has been a revelation since joining the Toffees from Aston Villa in the summer, and has been likened to Chelsea’s N’Golo Kante.
As comparisons go, that’s quite an impressive one for the Senegal international, but it’s clear to see why such comparisons have been made.
Gueye has helped steady the ship in the middle of the park for Everton, and has provided the attackers with an excellent foundation to go forward without impacting on the defensive shape of the team.
Second only to Kante in terms of amount of tackles and amount of interceptions in last season’s Premier League, Gueye and Jordan Henderson could strike up quite the partnership in the middle for Liverpool.
Romelu Lukaku
Photo: Paul Roberts / Offside.
Big strikers haven’t necessarily worked at Liverpool in recent years, with Andy Carroll and Christian Benteke struggling to hit form at Anfield, but Romelu Lukaku would has the skill and experience to keep up his goal-scoring form in the red of Liverpool.
This is mainly because Lukaku offers more than being a target man.
He’s quick and agile for a tall man, and is hugely prolific in front of goal, having netted 50 times for Everton since moving to Goodison Park in 2014, including five already this season.
He has been one of the most in-form strikers in the country over the last few seasons and, alongside the persistent fitness concerns surrounding Daniel Sturridge, he would be a striker Klopp would love to have at his disposal.