Everton’s FA Cup third-round tie with Sunderland has the feel of a proper occasion, even before you get to the football. It is a sold-out lunchtime kick-off at the Hill Dickinson Stadium, and Sunderland are expected to bring a huge travelling support, with close to 7,700 away fans set to turn it into the kind of noisy, old-school cup afternoon David Moyes was talking about in his press conference.
Moyes has made it clear Everton want to take the cup seriously, but the reality is he goes into this one with his options squeezed from every angle. Wednesday’s 1-1 draw with Wolves ended in late chaos, and the fall-out bites straight into the team sheet. Michael Keane begins a three-match suspension after the club’s appeal was rejected, while Jack Grealish also misses out after his dismissal at Molineux. That is two senior men removed before you even factor in injuries and international duty.
Everton’s injury list remains stubborn. Seamus Coleman is still out with a hamstring issue, Jarrad Branthwaite is sidelined, Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall remains unavailable, and Carlos Alcaraz has also been missing. On top of that, Iliman Ndiaye and Idrissa Gana Gueye are away at the Africa Cup of Nations with Senegal, taking two more experienced bodies out of the mix. The likely consequence is that Moyes has to lean on versatility across the back line and ask for big minutes again from players who have already been carrying a heavy load.
Recent form shows why this cup tie feels like an opportunity as much as a risk. Everton’s last six league games have been a mixture of gritty and chaotic: Chelsea 0-2 Everton, Everton 0-1 Arsenal, Burnley 0-0 Everton, Nottingham Forest 0-2 Everton, Everton 2-4 Brentford, Everton 1-1 Wolves. The win at Chelsea and the clean sheet at Forest underlined what Everton can be when they are compact and clinical, while the Brentford game showed how quickly things can unravel when the match becomes stretched and open.
Sunderland arrive close to Everton in league terms and with a profile that suggests this tie will not be comfortable. They sit 10th in the Premier League on 30 points from 21 matches, one point above Everton in 12th on 29, and their last six league games read: Sunderland 1-0 Newcastle, Brighton 0-0 Sunderland, Sunderland 1-1 Leeds, Sunderland 0-0 Man City, Spurs 1-1 Sunderland, Brentford 3-0 Sunderland. That run tells you plenty. Régis Le Bris’ side can frustrate elite opponents, keep matches tight and drag teams into a patient, tactical scrap, but the heavy defeat at Brentford is a reminder that when their rhythm breaks, the game can get away from them.
Team news from the Sunderland camp is also shaped by AFCON and fitness. Habib Diarra and Chemsdine Talbi remain away at the tournament, while Reinildo Mandava, Noah Sadiki, Arthur Masuaku and Bertrand Traore have only just been eliminated and their availability will depend on travel, recovery and selection calls. Wilson Isidor is a doubt with a knock, and Aji Alese continues his recovery from a long-term shoulder injury. Even so, Sunderland have looked organised and disciplined for much of the season, and that tends to travel well in cup ties.
The sides have already had a recent feeler for each other. They drew 1-1 at the Stadium of Light on 3 November, with Everton scoring first before Sunderland levelled after the break. Historically, Everton have had the edge in this competition too, knocking Sunderland out eight times, but cup history only matters if you give it a chance to show up on the pitch.
There is also a detail that changes the texture of the afternoon after the refereeing storm this week. There is no VAR at this stage of the FA Cup, so this one is decided the old way, by what the officials see in real time and by what the players can do in front of them. If it is level after 90 minutes, it will be settled on the day with extra time and, if needed, penalties.
For Everton, it is a chance to turn a week of suspensions and noise into something far simpler: win the game, ride the crowd, and give the second half of the season a spark. For Sunderland, it is the chance to prove their organisation can travel to a sold-out stadium and still stand up when the atmosphere gets heavy. Either way, it has the ingredients of a proper cup tie, loud, tense, and decided by who keeps their head when the stadium starts to shake.
