Armstrong Update & Everton Team News For Ipswich Clash

Harrison Armstrong is expected to be available for Everton's clash with Ipswich Town – but Merlin Röhl will miss out due to injury.

The Blues return to home soil for the second time in four days this weekend, looking to extend their unbeaten start to the season ahead of an extended international break.

Midfielder Armstrong missed the midweek Carabao Cup win over Wolves due to a knock but could be in contention for Saturday's matchday squad.

Röhl, however, is expected to remain sidelined for now, having missed the Toffees' past two games, as is summer signing Christian Nørgaard.

Speaking in Friday's pre-match press conference at Finch Farm, David Moyes said: "We're still waiting on Harrison a little bit to see how he is. We're expecting him to be okay, Harrison. 

"Merlin Röhl is not available yet, hopefully he'll be ready at the end of the international break."

Discussing the midweek display in the 1-0 over Wolves, Moyes continued: "I was really pleased with a lot of the performances – Tyler Dibling, Jack Grealish – to get the minutes they did and come through. They were the ones. Hayden [Hackney] does well every time he plays for us, so we're pleased with all of those boys who came in.

"That's part of it. We need them all to be performing and we need a group of players who, when they're selected, we can get them to play well."

When specifically asked about Dibling, who was chosen as the supporters' player of the match against Wolves, Moyes continued: "You try to put across what we do at Everton, what we expect from the players. He's coming in from a different environment, a different culture. I think there's a lot of Everton culture that he still has to find and show for us – but I think he's beginning to show that. He showed that on a brilliant recovery tackle the other night.

"What do we really want from [Dibling], though? We want him to take people on, we want him to score, to assist – and he's just beginning to show that a bit more now than what he has done previously."

Finally, on Friday's news that Jarrad Branthwaite had been recalled to the England squad, Moyes added: "I'm really pleased for anybody who gets selected for their country. Jarrad even more so, because of the injuries he's had.

"I heard he's only got one England cap, and it was only for 25 minutes or so... I hope he doesn't play four games when he goes away! But I'd be thrilled if Jarrad gets in. He's got a potential to be a really good player and he's showing lots of that, at the moment.

"I think some players can take a little bit of time. Jarrad is a big, tall boy, long limbs, and it can take a little bit of time for them to grow into it. Over the past year or two, obviously, we've been disappointed not to have more of him, but we paced him through pre-season. The staff here have done a really good job on him with the help he's had to prepare himself for the season, so hopefully he'll be fine."

The Opposition

Ipswich Town boss Gary O'Neil is expected to be without Jack Taylor due to a knee injury, while Emersonn and Azor Matusiwa face late fitness checks.