Barclays Premier League
- Venue: Goodison Park
- Date: Monday, 20 August, 20:00 BST
Long-term injury
absentee Nemanja Vidic returns for Manchester United, but four other
central defenders are unavailable for selection.
Rio Ferdinand injured his groin in training, joining Chris Smalling, Phil Jones and Jonny Evans on the sidelines.
Michael Carrick could deputise at the back while new £24m striker Robin van Persie is set to make his debut.
For Everton, midfielders Marouane Fellaini (groin strain) and Darron Gibson (thigh strain) are doubtful.
Vidic is set to return for the first time since
sustaining knee ligament damage last December. It is not yet known how
long Ferdinand will be out, but scan results are expected on Monday.
Smalling is expected to miss another six weeks after
surgery on a broken metatarsal, while Jones is struggling to overcome
repeated back spasms.
Evans had ankle surgery in May and returned to training
earlier this month, but did not take any part in the club's pre-season
matches.
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Robin van Persie's World Cup and European Championship goals
The eyes of the football world will be on
Robin van Persie
when he takes to the turf at Goodison Park. The left-footed
Netherlands striker and former Arsenal captain's move from north London
to Old Trafford surprised many - United have paid a substantial
transfer fee for a 29-year-old, even if he was the Premier League's top
goalscorer last season.
Another interesting narrative involves Wayne Rooney, who at the age of 26 is marking
10 years since making his top flight debut.
The former Everton youngster played for the Toffees against
Tottenham as a 16-year-old. He said at the weekend: "I still feel
exactly the same about my football as I did when I made my debut. I'm
still fairly young. I just hope I can play for another 10 years."
Plenty are backing Rooney and Van Persie to shine under
Sir Alex Ferguson's stewardship, but Everton are expected to unveil
their own potentially exciting striking partnership. Croatian forward
Nikica Jelavic - who moved to Goodison Park on January transfer deadline
day and scored 11 goals in 16 games - should link up well with former
Rangers striking partner Steven Naismith. The 25-year-old
joined as a free agent in July,
having scored 28 goals in 98 league appearances while in Glasgow.
Failing to find the back of the net regularly enough has undermined Everton in recent seasons and
24-year-old Kevin Mirallas
will add to the club's attacking options. Unfortunately for his new
employer he signed too late to participate against United, but Everton
boss David Moyes is
backing his signing from Olympiakos:
"He'll be a good addition to the squad, he's got a track record, he
was an exceptional talent in Greece where he scored a lot of goals and
was very exciting over there."
Moyes has lost the services of England international Jack Rodwell, who
moved to Manchester City
for £12m earlier in the month, as well as long-serving Tim Cahill. However, he is not short of options in midfield and
re-signed Steven Pienaar
from Tottenham to bolster his squad. The South African failed to
settle in London following his move from Merseyside 18 months ago, and
is a popular player in the blue half of the city.
The Toffees will also be determined not to suffer
another one of their notoriously poor starts to the campaign. "Every
year it is the same story with Everton," Pienaar has said. "The players
tend to wake up in the second half of the season."
An Everton team out of the blocks quickly on Monday
could pose a challenge to Manchester United but the visitors still start
as favourites. However, United were also favourites when the two teams
last met:
Sunday 22 April and a 4-4 thriller
that derailed the Red Devils' title chase. What price that scoreline again?
Head-to-head
- The two clubs have met on 187 occasions, United winning 81 times to Everton's 64.
- Everton have won just two of the last 10 Premier League matches at Goodison Park between the two teams.
- The highest-scoring match between the two clubs at Goodison Park came on Boxing Day in 1977, when United won 6-2.
Everton
- Seventh-place Everton had the third-best defence in the league in 2011-12, conceding just 1.05 goals on average per game.
- They lost eight of their first 14 Premier League matches last season.
- The Toffees were unbeaten in their final nine league matches.
- David Moyes's team have not finished outside the top 10 since 2005-06, when they ended the season in 11th position.
Manchester United
- United earned more points (89) in the 2011-12 season than
any other team in English top-flight history without being crowned
champions.
- They had 51 fewer shots than Liverpool in the last season, but scored 41 more goals.
- The Red Devils won 13 away matches last season, compared to just five in 2010-2011.
- They scored the most headed goals (16) in the 2011-12 Premier League, and also won more penalties (11) than any other team.