Pulis Can Exploit Home Weakness

A fortnight ago the narrative was how Roberto Martinez was failing his talented Everton squad. Three consecutive 3-0 victories and the dissenting voices have quietened. On the opposite side of the coin Tony Pulis and his team are mentioned in dispatches for relegation after a win-less run of five league games.

At some stage in the season, every team and/or manager is put under the spotlight and it’s best to take a long-term view.

The simple reality is that Everton play attractive football but fail to convert that into results, largely down to some poor goalkeeping and a porous defence (they ranked 13th in shots allowed). West Brom are the polar opposite, the team are pitching some awful numbers (20th in shots per game) but still churn out results, like almost every Pulis team in history.

Unfortunately style doesn’t win matches, Everton have just four victories at Goodison Park in the league. It’s not attractive but the ruthless efficiency of West Brom is worthy of supports at 13/8 (Ladbrokes) in the double chance market.