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Despite the Carling Cup match at Aldershot in midweek, Manchester United’s match at Everton on Saturday is the game observers are waiting to see for the reaction from Sir Alex Ferguson’s team after their 6-1 humiliation by Man City last weekend. And the Life’s A Pitch panel believes there could be few tougher places for a wounded team than Goodison Park and an Everton team fighting for points.

David Walker of the Sunday Mirror says Goodison is no longer the away banker for Man Utd and that Everton boss David Moyes will have his team up for this clash. ”If I was putting money on it, I’d take the draw now, because Moyes will get them up for this,” he says. “And whatever the perceived Man Utd backlash after the humiliation last Sunday against City, I think Moyes will have them ready for this.”

This clash will see former Everton player Wayne Rooney back at Goodison, a fixture that Dave Kidd of The People says Rooney often performs poorly in. ”The really intriguing thing will be how Rooney responds to the 6-1 [defeat to Man City], the Montenegro sending off, and the impending ban, because he’s not really had a chance to get that out of his system yet,” he says. “That’s going to set the tone for how United do. He’s never done well going back to his old ground, he’s rarely played well there. I certainly think Everton will get a result.”

Ian Ridley of the Express also fancies Everton to get a result against the Premier League champions. ”Everton really needed that win at Fulham after playing Chelsea, Man City and Liverpool recently and with United to come,” he says. “They’re better than people think; they’re just short of depth. I think they’ll give United a good game.”

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