Everton manager David Moyes has confirmed that his side may be without five players when they face Liverpool at Anfield this midweek, following his injury update in the pre-match press conference.

Following the final international break of the season, the Premier League has resumed, with Arne Slot’s side just 16 points away from being crowned champions. A victory over city rivals Everton would mark another significant step towards that goal.

“He has got a bit of an injury, but we are hopeful he will be OK,” Moyes said regarding left-back Vitalii Mykolenko. A final decision on his availability for Anfield will be made on the day of the match.

Iliman Ndiaye and Dwight McNeil are “progressing well,” Moyes added. Ndiaye has been sidelined for a shorter period than McNeil and is therefore closer to a return. Both attacking midfielders have resumed training, but neither is guaranteed to feature in the match.

Meanwhile, Dominic Calvert-Lewin has returned to individual training on the grass at Finch Farm but will not be involved in this fixture. He has yet to rejoin full team training and remains unavailable. Orel Mangala, meanwhile, is a long-term absentee due to a knee injury.

James Tarkowski scored a late equaliser in the Goodison Park edition of the fixture just a few weeks ago. That match had initially been postponed due to a storm, leading to a shorter turnaround between Merseyside derbies than usual.

Curtis Jones and Abdoulaye Doucouré were both sent off in that encounter, as were Arne Slot and his assistant, Sipke Hulshoff. Doucouré sparked a melee after celebrating in front of the away supporters, but both midfielders are in contention to start the rematch at Anfield.

Meanwhile, Arne Slot has confirmed that Liverpool will make a late assessment on Alisson Becker ahead of the game, after the goalkeeper sustained a head injury while on international duty with Brazil. However, Liverpool are set to receive a timely boost with the return of Conor Bradley.

The young right-back has rejoined training, but no final decision has been made on his involvement against Everton. “We have to make a smart decision with that,” Slot stated.

Centre-back Joe Gomez was seen training alone on Monday as he nears a return. Meanwhile, Real Madrid-bound Trent Alexander-Arnold is currently sidelined with a muscle injury and is not expected to be back for several weeks.