Everton Round-Up, Tuesday 20th October: Garner Urges Response as Moyes Faces Arsenal Selection Questions After Chelsea Defeat
Everton's focus has quickly turned to Saturday's trip to Arsenal following Saturday's 2-0 defeat to Chelsea, with Michael Ball warning the Blues cannot afford a repeat of that performance at the Emirates (Liverpool Echo). James Garner has urged his teammates to use the loss as motivation, insisting the setback can "spur" the squad on ahead of the Emirates test (EvertonFC.com) (Royal Blue Mersey). Liverpool Echo's tactical analysis suggested David Moyes' approach should have worked against Xabi Alonso's Chelsea side, but Everton simply couldn't fashion enough chances to make it count (Liverpool Echo).
There are selection doubts to resolve before the weekend, with Ainsley Maitland-Niles' chances of facing his former club Arsenal in question, while Moyes also has a winger dilemma to solve (Liverpool Echo). On individual form, Moyes admitted that James Garner is still "a little bit off" his best level after an interrupted start to the campaign, even though the midfielder has forced his way back into the England picture (Read Everton) (Read Everton). Captain James Tarkowski, meanwhile, has been in excellent form, with Everton highlighting that he has won more duels than any other player in the Premier League this season (EvertonFC.com) (Read Everton) (Read Everton).
On the transfer front, Everton have reportedly been named among seven European clubs keeping tabs on free-agent striker Mauro Icardi, who has been without a club since leaving Galatasaray (Read Everton). Royal Blue Mersey's round-up also touched on a reported interest in Gyokeres as part of a wider look at Tuesday's news lines (Royal Blue Mersey). Elsewhere, Duncan Ferguson has made a firm claim that Everton should never have let Dominic Calvert-Lewin leave, saying he personally would have gone to great lengths to keep the striker at the club (Read Everton). Ferguson has also been confirmed as the new manager of Irish Premiership side Glentoran, and has already spoken about Everton transfer talks as he began life in his new role (Liverpool Echo).
Off the pitch, former Everton striker Louis Saha has described the club as a "great investment opportunity" amid The Friedkin Group's exploration of new investment, though he did question the timing of their move (Liverpool Echo) (Read Everton) (Read Everton). Saha, who played under David Moyes at the club, also cast doubt on suggestions that Celtic could prise the manager away from Goodison Park in their search for a new boss (BBC Sport). Separately, Eddie Howe has reportedly been tipped to turn down any approach from Everton, among other Premier League clubs, as he considers a return to management following his Newcastle exit (Liverpool Echo).
Looking at the women's game and academy news, Everton's U21s are preparing to take on Borussia Mönchengladbach's U21 side, with details issued on how fans can watch the fixture. And on this day in Everton history, ToffeeWeb looked back at the belief within the squad before the 1995 FA Cup final, when Paul Rideout's goal secured a 1-0 win over Manchester United for what remains the club's last major trophy (ToffeeWeb).
This round-up is written with the help of AI, using only the day's headlines from the publishers credited above. Each point links to the original report — tap the source name to read it in full.