Scott Phelan has spoken of his pride at having Goodison Park as Everton Women’s home venue and believes that it perhaps adds a little motivation for his players – something they will need on Sunday when they welcome Aston Villa to the Grand Old Lady.
The Toffees boss has revealed that the medical team are assessing one or two knocks within the squad, but stopped short of revealing who was actually being assessed ahead of the clash with the Villains, who will be accompanied by former Blues boss Brian Sorensen, Villa’s interim head coach.
Coming off the back of a 2-0 win over Newcastle United in midweek – Everton’s fifth straight win of the season at Goodison – head coach Phelan has expressed his desire on creating a competitive environment for his players, something that is made easier by having such an iconic home venue.
“We want a competitive environment where every player feels like they can get game time,” he said.
“It is important to win games, even more so at home. We have spoke about how good it is to have it as our home. Hopefully, we can keep that run going this weekend.”
“We are definitely proud to have Goodison as an arena to play football in. Maybe that adds a little more motivation for players.
“The fact that we are at home is really good – we want to use that as an advantage.”
The Opposition
Sitting 10th in the table and just one WSL win in six, Sorensen will need no extra motivation to get his current side up the table by ending his former side’s 100% home record this season, having managed the Toffees for four years.
Much like their weekend hosts the Villains have found goals difficult to come by, having just scored one more than Everton this league campaign although leaking goals has also been an issue, with only the WSL’s bottom two sides conceding more.
Despite their stuttering start Sorensen’s side will arrive on Merseyside in a bit of form having won their last two games, including victory over Liverpool.
A side that contains experienced forward Rachel Daly and former Red Missy Bo Kearns, it has been Chasity Grant that has been one of the team’s highlights so far.
The Netherlands winger already has two wins and three assists in her eight starts this season, and will be one to watch this weekend if Everton are to maintain their 100% start at home this season.
Previous Meetings
It took till February of last season for the Blues to secure their first league victory of the season in 2025/26 by coming from behind to best the Villains 2-1 – Sorensen’s final game in charge at Goodison.
Ebony Salmon gave the visitors the lead in the 17th minute but a Martina Fernandez double ensured the points would remain on Merseyside.
Fixtures between the two sides are generally high-scoring affairs, as proved by the two teams earlier fixture in the season in Birmingham – Kelly Gago’s 94th-minute equaliser earning a deserved point for the travelling Toffees in a pulsating 3-3 draw.
Sorensen returns.
Everton put their perfect home start on the line.
The Blues take on the Villains at Goodison Park on Sunday, 25 November, at 2pm BST (9am ET, 6am PT).
Tickets are still available here.