Everton manager Sean Dyche has revealed that both Dwight McNeil and Jarrad Branthwaite are available for selection ahead of their important Premier League clash with Brentford on Saturday.
McNeil was arguably rushed back too soon from a brief setback for the trip to Southampton at the start of the month, and then subsequently missed the 0-0 draw at West Ham United the following week, so the Everton faithful will be glad to welcome back the player that has had a hand in 60% of their league goals so far.
Getting Branthwaite back to full fitness is arguably even more important, as the young defender has struggled to recover from groin surgery over the summer, starting just two matches so far this season.
The 22-year-old quickly withdrew from the England squad after being a late call-up last week, in order for him to focus on a full recovery from the surgery that left him on the sidelines for over three months.
At an important stage in the season, Dyche is being handed plenty of injury boosts, with Armando Broja and Youssef Chermiti both back in training.
Broja is yet to make his debut after joining on loan from Chelsea, and Dyche has said he will not feature here, but the Albanian has been in full training for over a week, while Chermiti returned on Thursday after undergoing surgery on his foot during the summer.
However, captain Seamus Coleman suffered a setback just before the international break, pulling out of the Ireland squad with a hamstring issue, so Ashley Young and Vitalii Mykolenko are set to remain in the starting XI at full-back, with Nathan Patterson seemingly out of the picture.
The only other injury concerns for Everton relate to midfield duo James Garner and Tim Iroegbunam, who will both return in December, so Idrissa Gueye and Abdoulaye Doucoure are set to start in the engine room.
Gueye featured twice for Senegal during the international break alongside Iliman Ndiaye, and the summer signing continues to be the brightest spark in a blue shirt, because his 24 completed dribbles so far ranks him third in the Premier League, and just six short of matching Everton's best in that statistic from last season (McNeil - 30).
For number nine Dominic Calvert-Lewin, the stats do not look as flattering, as no striker has been flagged offside (16) or missed a bigger proportion of big chances (seven from nine) in the Premier League than him this season.
Beto found the net once against last week, claiming a first international goal for Guinea-Bissau, and remains the last player to score for Everton - three games ago against Fulham - but Calvert-Lewin is set to be the man preferred once more.
Everton possible starting lineup: Pickford; Young, Tarkowski, Branthwaite, Mykolenko; Gueye, Doucoure; Lindstrom, McNeil, Ndiaye; Calvert-Lewin
Click here to see how Brentford could line up for this encounter.
Andrew Delaney
