Everton have been extremely jammy in almost every league game they have played against us in the Premiership. The exception was last season when big Duncan Ferguson headed into his own net to give the Toffees a taste of their own medicine at Goodison Park. Here's a checklist of what they've achieved against us so far.
Victory with 11 men when they should have had 10? Check.
Victory via a cheesy goal in the last 10 minutes? Double Check.
Victory with the winner scored in the 94th minute? Check.
Victory via a deflected own goal? Check.
So how are they going to beat us this time? Is Andy Johnson going to dive and give Everton a penalty that ends up being the winner? Could James Beattie score a goal that is miles offside? How about a handball in the net that ends up counting?
In all seriousness, this is a massive game for both clubs this season. If we win we are likely to be third at the end of the weekend as Arsenal go to Chelsea on Sunday. Should we lose, we could fall as low as 9th in the table. If we're looking to challenge for Europe then we have to win games at home to sides who are likely to be well up there come May.
Both teams have personnel problems going into tommorow's fixture though.
Everton are missing key midfielders Leon Osman, Mikel Arteta and Tim Cahill. Phil Neville is a doubt but Simon Davies will return to the side. Other names who will miss the game tommorow for the away side are Naysmith, Pistone, Hibbert, Anichebe and Boyle.
Andy Johnson and James Beattie are likely to partner each other up front. Would you bet against a former Pompey target or an ex-Scummer finding the back of the net tommorow?
Pompey will be missing Pedro Mendes after his red card against Villa last week. Two-goal hero Matt Taylor also faces a fitness test as he has a back injury and David Thompson is also a doubt. Lomana LuaLua has been ruled out for six weeks and Andy Cole is also injured until the new year. That means that Benjani and Kanu will be our only two fit strikers for the rest of 2006.
The good news for us is that Sean Davis should return to the lineup alongside Manuel Fernandes. If Taylor and Thompson can't make it, we could see Niko Kranjcar and Ognjen Koroman make rare starts for the club.
I feel if we are going to win this game then we'll have to keep our home first clean sheet since West Ham were beaten at Fratton Park 2-0 yonks ago. Everton are a stubborn side that don't concede many goals and with Johnson always liable to nick one at the other end, Linvoy and Sol will be on their toes all game.
I think we can win. We've already buried the Charlton curse this season and we're at home so we should be able to take the game to Everton. They are missing the majority of their first choice midfield so it'll be up to Fernandes to dictate the pace of the game and prove he is worth the £7 million we are rumoured to be paying for him in January. It's about time Gary O'Neil scored too!
Kanu hasn't scored in three games either, so he's due and here's hoping Benjani forgets his terrible misses of last week and scores his first goal in ages. All of our players are going to have to perform to their full capabilities if we are to win this vital game.
C'mon Pompey, let's end Everton's winning streak!
Premiership Past: Pompey vs Everton
03/04: Pompey 1 Everton 2
On loan striker Jason Roberts gave Pompey the lead early on but Everton soon levelled after Lee Carsley took advantage of laughable defending. Wayne Rooney scored soon after and should have been sent off later in the game after a blatant shove on Steve Stone. Everyone knew it was a red card offence, including Rooney himself as he went into the tunnel. However the referee called him back and surprisingly only issued a yellow card. The referee? A certain Uriah Rennie.
04/05: Pompey 0 Everton 1
Tim Cahill scored with a header from a set-piece 10 minutes from the end of this match to inflict Pompey's first home defeat of the season. It was a stupid goal to give away and it was Everton's only real chance in a pretty dire game.
05/06: Pompey 0 Everton 1
Pompey fielded new signings Pedro Mendes, Sean Davis and Benjani Mwaruwari in hope that we could finally beat Everton at home. However they weren't 100% fit and the visitors got jammy yet again and Leon Osman's shot deflected off Andy O'Brien and trickled past a hopeless Jamie Ashdown and into the net.
Pundit Watch
Lawro: Home Win (2-0)
Sky Sports: Draw (2-2)
SoccerNet: Home Win