Everton and West Bromwich Albion have played out a 1-1 draw in Saturday's Premier League encounter at Goodison Park.
The Baggies opened the scoring on seven minutes through Jay Rodriguez. but substitute Oumar Niasse drew the hosts level in the second half.
However, the match was overshadowed by Toffees midfielder James McCarthy suffering a double leg fracture 10 minutes after the interval.
The 27-year-old attempted to block Salomon Rondon's shot inside the penalty area and the ensuing accidental collision saw him require lengthy treatment on the pitch before being stretchered off.
Here is how Sports Mole covered the action on Merseyside.
Hello and welcome to Sports Mole's live coverage of the Premier League meeting between Everton and West Bromwich Albion at Goodison Park.
Today's game on Merseyside pits a side which has begun 2018 on the wrong foot against one which has managed to end a dreadful winless run and will be hoping to kick on in a bid to edge away from relegation trouble.
In their two Premier League games in 2018, Everton have picked up no points, scored no goals and not managed a single shot on target, in addition to not having won any of their matches this year in all competitions.
West Brom, meanwhile, finally ended their club record winless run of 20 league matches by beating Brighton last time out, and will be hoping to build on that victory at Goodison Park today in a bid to edge out of the relegation zone.
We have the team news from Goodison so let's take a look at who makes the starting XIs and subs benches for their respective sides.
EVERTON STARTING XI: Pickford, Kenny, Holgate, Williams, Martina, Schneiderlin, McCarthy, Walcott, Sigurdsson, Vlasic, Tosun
WEST BROM STARTING XI: Foster, Dawson, Evans, Hegazi, Gibbs, Phillips, Barry, Krychowiak, Brunt, Rodriguez, Rondon
EVERTON SUBS: Robles, Keane, Jagielka, Gueye, Bolasie, Niasse, Rooney
WEST BROM SUBS: Myhill, Nyom, McAuley, Livermore, Field, McClean, Robson-Kanu
Sam Allardyce, taking charge of his 1,000th competitive match today, makes four changes to the Toffees XI which lost 4-0 at Tottenham Hotspur last time out.
Theo Walcott, who joined this week from Arsenal, is immediately drafted into his new side's starting line-up, while Ashley Williams returns to captain the XI and Morgan Schneiderlin and Nikola Vlasic are drafted into midfield.
Phil Jagielka, Idrissa Gueye, Yannick Bolasie and Wayne Rooney drop to the bench, while Michael Keane has recovered from a gashed foot that has caused him to miss the last two matches and is also among the subs.
Alan Pardew, meanwhile, keeps faith with the same XI which ended the Baggies' 20-game winless streak in the Premier League with last week's 2-0 victory over Brighton at The Hawthorns.
Ahmed Hegazi and Craig Dawson were doubts for today's game after a clash of heads in last week's win but both are fit and among the starters, while James Morrison and Nacer Chadli remain out injured.
There is no doubt that Sam Allardyce was a good call to take the reins at Everton, given their early-season struggles - indeed, they now sit in the top half of the table. But a couple of alarm bells have begun ringing, given their poor start to the year.
Their last win was on December 18 against Swansea City, and since then, they have drawn against Chelsea and West Brom before losing to Bournemouth, Manchester United and Spurs, plus dropping out of the FA Cup at the hands of bitter rivals Liverpool.
Admittedly, defeats against Man United and Spurs are by no means shameful results, but failing to register a single shot on target in those games is cause for concern.
As fixtures go, being at home against a struggling West Brom outfit could well have seemed a good proposition for Allardyce to kickstart their year, but with the Baggies having finally managed to get a league win on board just last time out, their confidence is bound to be much higher now, potentially making for a tricky game.
What have the managers said ahead of today's fixture? Let's start with the milestone man.
Allardyce told reporters at his pre-match presser: "We've still got a little bit to do to get away from being dragged back into the relegation zone. Adding a striker (Cenk Tosun) and attacking wide player (Theo Walcott) will hopefully give us more goals. I've got to try and revert back to a more defensive structure with the team again and try to get those clean sheets that gave us so many wins when I first came here."
Pardew, meanwhile, confirmed that the Baggies considered making a move for Walcott, telling the press: "With players like Theo, is it a straight deal or something which could be a loan and a deal in the summer? All these equations have to be discussed. If you're asking me did we discuss Theo? Yeah, we did, but it was pretty evident after a few phone calls that it wasn't going to be the case."
Former Everton midfielder Gareth Barry will be turning out against his former side and Pardew spoke about the Premier League veteran, now with the Baggies, saying: "I did have a little chat with him about a couple of things. The thing about football clubs is that managers change but the kind of feeling of the club stays the same. The way they play, the way the crowd generate noise and how it works. I talked to him a little bit about that and how we can help our cause but I'm not going to give you any answers, obviously!"
HEAD TO HEAD: Kickoff is just over 20 minutes away so let's take a look at what precedent these two sides have in prior clashes.
Everton have only lost twice in 14 matches against West Brom in all competitions, with just one defeat against them in their last 10 Premier League games.
The Baggies have failed to score in 10 of their last 16 league visits to Goodison Park, including three of their last four.
Indeed, West Brom's solitary victory at Everton's ground in the last eight years came in February 2016.
The Toffees won 3-0 in the corresponding fixture last season, while this season's reverse fixture was a goalless draw.
Sam Allardyce has never lost a home Premier League match against the Baggies, with two wins and six draws from eight played - his only home league defeat against them came in December 2000 in the second tier as Bolton Wanderers manager, a 1-0 defeat via a Jason Roberts goal.
Wayne Rooney, who is among the Everton subs today, has had a hand in 14 goals in 13 Premier League starts against West Brom - seven goals and seven assists. Could he come off the bench and deliver against the Baggies once again today?
SCORE PREDICTION: Less than 10 minutes until we're underway so time for me to have a go at predicting today's result. I reckon that, with Walcott in the side plus Cenk Tosun having had more time to get accustomed to his surroundings and Allardyce having gone back to basics following their poor start this calendar year, Everton will have more than enough to see off the visitors. I'll call it a 2-0 home win.
Before kickoff, there will be a minute's applause in honour of Albion icon Cyrille Regis, who died earlier this month, aged 59.
Here we go, Ashley Williams and Jonny Evans lead Everton and West Brom out of the tunnel and onto the pitch at Goodison Park!
Everyone inside Goodison Park rises for an emotional round of applause in the memory of the late Cyrille Regis.
KICKOFF! Referee Stuart Attwell gets us underway, with Everton in blue and West Brom in their change strip of white shirts and red shorts.
A tentative start to proceedings on Merseyside with the visitors first to make headway in the opposition half, Rodriguez and Rondon string a few passes together but Everton are alert and leave no gaps.
CHANCE! Rondon weighs in with the game's first effort on target as he gets a shot away, but the effort is rushed and Pickford is barely troubled.
CHANCE! Rondon holds the ball up before teeing up Phillips, who in turn finds the marauding Krychowiak, but he blazes over with just Pickford to beat.
GOAL! EVERTON 0-1 WEST BROM (JAY RODRIGUEZ)
And the deadlock is broken early on by the visitors! Moments after Krychowiak wastes a gilt-edged chance, he makes amends by playing Rodriguez through on goal, who in turn slots the ball beyond Pickford! Poor, poor defending by the Toffees!
Allardyce will be fuming with his side's poor start here, especially given how West Brom looked dangerous and spurned several good opportunities before finally slotting in. They could have a long afternoon ahead of them.
Vlasic charges down the left before playing a ball inside for Sigurdsson, but Evans is on hand to block and hack the ball to safety - the Icelander appeals for a penalty, but Attwell isn't convinced the Baggies defender handled, and play continues.
Everton's wait for a Premier League shot on target continues - they haven't managed one since Idrissa Gueye's goal against Bournemouth.
Walcott tries to find space down the right flank and is brought by Rondon for a free kick which Sigurdsson whips in, but it comes to nothing.
From the free kick, the ball comes back to Sigurdsson around eight yards from goal, but the WBA defence closes him down before he can get a shot away.
CHANCE! Rondon lays the ball off to Brunt, who in turn swings a cross into the box which very nearly veers into the net beyond the reach of Pickford, but ultimately it's just wide!
Sigurdsson looks to maraud through West Brom's defence, with Evans going down and leaving the back line momentarily a man down, but the Baggies manage to repel the attack.
Evans has to receive treatment on what looks to be an ankle injury but before long he is back up on his feet and play resumes.
Walcott heads down the line and gets into position to curl a dangerous cross into the Baggies area, but none of his teammates had made a run and the ball flashes across goal. Everton very disjointed today, the players don't appear to all be on the same wavelength.
Dawson clatters into Schneiderlin, sending him to ground, and the Albion defender ends up getting told off by the referee, but no cards are shown.
Everton waste the opportunity to mount an attack, failing to get the ball to an advancing Walcott, and West Brom hit on the counter as Brunt is played into space down the left, a cross is whipped towards the Toffees' near post but it's cleared with ease.
You can sense the unrest among the Everton fans in the Goodison stands, given their side has produced virtually nothing today. Allardyce has instructed some of his benched players to warm up - could we see first-half substitutions?
Phillips has a go from 25 yards and wins a corner as the effort takes a slight deflection off an opposition defender but it comes to nothing.
CHANCE! Everton's wait for a shot on target is over! Kenny cuts in off the right flank and curls a left-footed effort towards goal which forces Foster into action, fumbling the ball but eventually gathering. Cue ironic cheers and applause from the stands.
Walcott fends off three West Brom players before playing the ball out to Tosun, who in turn delivers a first-time cross into the box, but once again only one Everton player had made a run into the box, and the visitors deal with it easily.
CHANCE! West Brom win a corner which is whipped in by Brunt and finds an unmarked Rondon in front of goal for a free header, but it's thumped over the bar!
BOOKING: Walcott earns a caution on his debut as he trips up Krychowiak following a clumsy first touch on the ball, as one minute of injury time is announced at Goodison.
HALF TIME: EVERTON 0-1 WEST BROM
That's half time and it's been a pretty dour opening 45 minutes as far as Everton are concerned, as they trail 1-0 to West Bromwich Albion.
Alan Pardew's charges were brightest from the off and have easily been best in all departments at Goodison, going ahead after just seven minutes through Jay Rodriguez and keeping the Toffees at bay for the remainder of the half.
Everton have been toothless and disjointed, with passages of play into the final third coming to nothing because of blue shirts not making the right runs on more than one occasion.
On the bright side, the hosts' barren spell of four hours and 10 minutes without a shot on target in the league has come to an end with Jonjoe Kenny's bright curling effort on 38 minutes, but the mere fact that this is newsworthy shows just how poor Everton have been in recent games.
As it stands, the Baggies are outside the Premier League's bottom three, but will they be able to maintain their lead at the final whistle? Sports Mole is on hand to bring you all the second-half action as it unfolds.
HALF-TIME STATS: Everton have boasted 59% possession and made 239 passes, but have mustered just one shot on target and one off target, while West Brom, despite having had 41% possession and made 164 passes, have had two on-target shots and two off-target shots.
KICKOFF: We're back underway on Merseyside as the visitors kick off. One substitution at the break, made by Everton as Nikola Vlasic makes way for Yannick Bolasie.
Everton are playing with urgency as they bid to make an early impact in the second 45 but West Brom are well drilled and manage to repel these early forays into their half.
Little to write home about in these early stages of the second half, but West Brom definitely look comfortable at the minute, while Everton continue to struggle and aren't seeing much of the ball.
Now Everton are getting closer to troubling their opponents as Walcott's cross falls to Sigurdsson, who has a go and sees his shot charged down by Evans before Hegazi skews a panicky clearance towards his own goal, but the Baggies win a free kick after Foster and Tosun collide in a bid to get to the ball.
More good work from Walcott, who makes headway down the right, gets the better of Hegazi and whips a cross into the area, but once again, there are no blue shirts ready to capitalise and the unchallenged Foster can claim with ease.
Everton now seem to be asking questions of the opposition defence as Sigurdsson tries slip the ball into the path of Walcott, Gibbs gets in the way but the Icelander reclaims, only for his heavy touch to send the ball out of play.
We have a stoppage in play as McCarthy appears to have picked up an injury after a last-ditch tackle on Rondon, who had gone clean through on goal.
Rondon appears in visible distress, crying, as medical staff rush onto the field to attend to McCarthy. It could potentially be a broken leg here. The injured player is stretchered off the pitch to a standing ovation as Wayne Rooney takes his place.
Given the apparent gravity of the injury to McCarthy, the momentum has gone out of the game completely. Early reports suggest that the 27-year-old has suffered a double leg break, tibia and fibula, but these are unconfirmed at this stage.
BOOKING: Prior to the lengthy stoppage in play, Schneiderlin picked up a booking for a late challenge on Barry.
Bolasie does well to chest down Holgate's long ball and get past Dawson, but Barry gets in across to hack away.
SUBSTITUTION: Everton make their third and final change as Oumar Niasse replaces Cenk Tosun.
GOAL! EVERTON 1-1 WEST BROM (OUMAR NIASSE)
Niasse's arrival was booed by some of the Everton fans but he's justified his introduction by equalising with his first touch! Bolasie begins the move by playing in Rooney, who picks out Walcott at the back post, the new signing flicks the ball on at the near post where the substitute fires home from point-blank range!
CHANCE! Krychowiak marauds forward from midfield and rifles a powerful effort towards goal which Pickford parries into the path of Phillips, but he can't direct his first-time effort on target!
CHANCE! Now Walcott has a go on goal as he volleys Rooney's flicked header goalwards, but Foster gets his hands on the effort! Edging into the latter stages of this game and it's all to play for!
CHANCE! Phillips easily gets past Holgate and Martina before firing a powerful effort goalwards which stings Pickford's palms.
SUBSTITUTIONS: Pardew makes all three changes in one fell swoop as Jake Livermore, James McClean and Gareth McAuley come on for Chris Brunt, Jay Rodriguez and Jonny Evans.
CHANCES! Rondon spurns two opportunities to edge the Baggies back in front - first he forces a save from Pickford with a curling drive and, moments later, the ball is recycled and crossed into the box, where the Venezuelan heads just wide!
CHANCE! And again it's Rondon, who finds Gibbs in space on the left before the full-back stands the ball up into the box which finds his teammate, but it's glanced wide!
BOOKING: Niasse almost gets through on goal, but Dawson comes across and cuts out the danger with a handball, which earns him a caution.
CHANCE! Sigurdsson lofts the resulting free kick into the area and finds Holgate but the resulting header is well over.
The official signals seven minutes of stoppage time here at Goodison.
West Brom get men forward as a corner kick is met by Evans at the near post, but he cannot get his effort past a wall of blue shirts.
CHANCE! Rondon has a go from long range and his effort dips downwards, but ricochets against the post!
FULL TIME: EVERTON 1-1 WEST BROMWICH ALBION
That's the full time whistle and it ends all square between Everton and West Brom.
The Baggies opened the scoring on seven minutes through Jay Rodriguez and had the better of things against a lacklustre Toffees side for the entirety of the first half, but substitute Oumar Niasse drew the hosts level in the second half, and so it remained until the final whistle despite a glut of chances late on from both sides.
The game has however been marred by a dreadful injury to James McCarthy, an accidental coming together between himself and Salomon Rondon which left the Everton midfielder with a broken leg. We hope he makes a speedy recovery.
That's all we have time for here but don't go anywhere because Sports Mole is on hand to bring you all the latest match reports, reaction and big news from the day's football. Thank you for following and, until next time, goodbye.
