Three games unbeaten in the Premier League. A clean sheet last weekend. Jack Grealish is firing on all cylinders. Everton are in good nick ahead of the Merseyside derby on Saturday.
Sixth in the standings, the Toffees know their biggest test of the campaign looms large, and that Arne Slot’s Liverpool boast one of the most dangerous squads on the continent.
There may be a gulf in spending power between the two behemoths on Merseyside, but Moyes has equipped his team with plenty of fresh quality this summer, and the early results on the pitch point toward good business.
And the above-mentioned Grealish certainly has the capacity to steal the headlines.
Grealish's start to life at Everton
Grealish, 30, joined Everton on loan in the summer after falling by the wayside at Manchester City. Now he is reborn, having claimed four assists already in the Premier League and been handed the Player of the Month award for August.
Unleashed once again, the England international will surely channel much of the Blues’ positive attacking play, with Sofascore recording that he is already averaging 2.8 key passes per game.
Liverpool have lacked fluency in the opening weeks of the season and have proven themselves susceptible to pressure and physicality in their defensive third. This is Everton’s bread and butter, and Moyes will ensure that his team push in all the right places to silence the Anfield crowd.
Grealish will be key, of course. But he won’t be alone in this staggering task. Indeed, it might be time for Moyes to unleash new recruit Tyler Dibling from the opening whistle, with the teenage sensation perhaps standing a chance of being Everton’s own version of Sadio Mane on derby day.
Moyes must unleash Tyler Dibling vs Liverpool
It took a few attempts, but Everton signed Dibling from Southampton in a £42m deal this summer, landing one of the country’s prized up-and-coming talents.
The 19-year-old, who can play across a range of different attacking roles, was the shining light from a drab Saints season in 2024/25, and his fleet-footed and robust style of play suggests he could be a force to be reckoned with in the years to come at the Hill Dickinson Stadium.
So far, he’s been kept on the bench for Everton as Moyes looks to slowly integrate him into the system, so far unleashing the English prospect only during the win over Mansfield Town in the Carabao Cup.
Right winger
35
7
1
Attacking midfield
26
11
5
Central midfield
8
1
3
Left winger
2
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2
Given Tim Iroegbunam’s struggles last weekend in the 0-0 draw to Aston Villa, Moyes could drop Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall deeper and shift Dibling into the advanced midfield role, where his fast feet and incisive passing could be at its best, funnelling the ball out to Grealish and the electric Iliman Ndiaye.
With focus sure to be on negating Grealish from stretching lines and wreaking havoc in the penalty area, Dibling could add that extra dimension to capitalise on any chinks, creating a truly dynamic system capable of devastating results on the break.
Because Everton will expect to be hemmed in for much of the contest, but these fresh faces point toward a new, levelled-up version of the squad which will hope to challenge for a place at the higher levels of the table, should this early-season form persist. Dibling will help with that to no end.
Starting him against Liverpool would be a bold call, but it would be sure to spring a surprise on a Reds defence there for the taking, and given that he has been signed from Southampton, he might indeed prove to be Everton’s own Mane, who established legendary status during his years at Liverpool playing for Jurgen Klopp.
Mane had a rich record against Everton, scoring five goals and supplying two assists across 16 matches in all competitions. His 94th-minute derby-day winner way back in 2016 still stings those of a Toffees persuasion.
The Senegalese’s speed and trickery made him a thorn in his opponents’ sides for many years, and now Moyes could get his own back as Everton manager by starting Dibling, whose “incredible” displays last season, as remarked by Saints correspondent Alfie House, suggest he is ready to take the leap and work some magic for this fast-rising Everton team.