Good afternoon my friends and welcome to our live coverage of Manchester United's visit to Everton. If for whatever reason you missed your fry-up this morning then, firstly, sorry for your loss because I've been there, but worry not because we've got a very meaty contest to chew on here for an hour or so before kickoff.

What's that coming over the hill? Is it a monster? No, it's team news, but before it gets here let's have a quick look at both teams' fortunes as of late, shall we? Why not.

Well, United come into this one after seeing their six-game winning streak come to an end in last Saturday's trip to Chelsea. With their title bid effectively dead in the water, it's all about Champions League qualification for the Red Devils now, who can usurp Manchester City and move into second place with a win here.

Victory would see them move 10 points clear of fifth-placed Liverpool - who have a game in hand - but that should be that as far as the top four goes, right? But only if they win, and they'll need to work hard because Everton are no mugs - and it's going to be a raucous atmosphere inside Goodison this afternoon.

Marouane Fellaini and Wayne Rooney are set to face their former clubs and they're not fondly thought of in the blue half of Merseyside, are they, so we'll experience more boos than a ghost train this afternoon. One of them will surely score, won't they?

Anywho, how have Everton fared this season? Not great, because they're 12th, but they do bring a degree of momentum into this one, having won four of their last five Premier League outings, with the other being a 1-1 draw at Swansea a fortnight ago. They're bang in form to tell the truth and hopefully we've got an evenly-fought clash on our hands here.

Anyways, let's crack on with a bit of team news. Stay tuned.

EVERTON XI: Howard; Coleman, Stones, Jagielka, Baines; McCarthy, Barry; Barkley, Osman, Lennon; Lukaku

UNITED XI: De Gea, Valencia, Smalling, McNair, Shaw, Blind, Herrera, Mata, Fellaini, Young, Rooney

EVERTON SUBS: Robles; Kone, Mirallas, Naismith, besic, Alcaraz, Garbutt, Besic

UNITED SUBS: Valdes, Blackett, Januzaj, Pereira, Di Maria, Van Persie, Falcao

Let's start with the hosts and I can confirm that they make two changes from their 1-0 win over Burnley last time out - with Lukaku among the changes!

Yep, the big Belgian comes in for Arouna Kone to spearhead the attack, with veteran midfielder Leon Osman replacing last week's match winner Kevin Mirallas to join Aaron Lennon and Ross Barkley in supporting Lukaku. Further back you'll find James McCarthy and Gareth Barry in midfield, in front of the same defence that kept out Burnley - Seamus Coleman, Phil Jagielka, John Stones and Leighton Baines.

On to United now and Louis van Gaal makes just the one change from his side's 1-0 defeat Chelsea last Saturday, with fit-again Daley Blind returning to replace striker Radamel Falcao, enabling Rooney the chance to start up front.

It's the same back four that lost at Stamford Bridge, with Antonio Valencia, Chris Smalling, Paddy McNair and Luke Shaw lining up, with Blind and Herrera further forward in midfield. Then, you've got Ashley Young, Fellaini and Juan Mata in behind spearhead Rooney and that's your lot!

Who can the Toffees look to for a bit of inspiration in their quest to topple these Red Devils then? Well, with eight goals, Romelu Lukaku is the leading goalscorer, but the big Belgian is a little short on match sharpness after missing a few outings through injury, so it remains to be seen if he'll be at his best.

Interestingly, Lukaku is one of only FOUR players to have scored a Premier League hat-trick against Manchester United. Email us and tell us the three others for the chance to win a bucket of gunge signed by Pat Sharpe. That's not a real competition so we'll just tell you: David Bentley, Dirk Kuyt & Samuel Eto'o. There you go.

Who can United look to for a bit of inspiration in the final third then? It has to be Radamel Falcao, doesn't it? Laugh out loud. On a serious note, the Colombian worked hard against Chelsea last week, despite failing to convert one or two good chances, and there is one school of thought that suggests a goal isn't far away. He's not starting, however, so it's gotta be Rooney!

Despite only grabbing one goal in his last five, the former Evertonian is always a menace and he's got the extra incentive of facing his old club this afternoon. Will he score? Do bears do brown things in the woods?

DID YOU KNOW? We're about 13 minutes from kickoff so let's have a quick look at a few stats, shall we? Alright, and did you know that Everton, with 31 defeats, have lost more times against United than any other club? However, the Toffees are vying for their third successive home win over the Red Devils, who won the reverse fixture 2-1 earlier this season.

120 PREDICTION: Let's be bold and go for a pre-match prediction shall we? Alright, and let's go for a 2-2 draw. Everton, who have won four of their last five, are unbeaten at home in all competitions this year, so they'll be up for this, and that defeat to Chelsea last weekend surely took some of the wind out of United's sails, having previously had a six-game winning streak.

We touched on the fact that the visitors triumphed 2-1 in the reverse fixture this season, but here's one of the reasons why it could've gone differently for Everton that day:

Incidentally, David de Gea was named in the PFA Team of the Season this afternoon. Congratulations to him, but who joined him? Check here.

Right, both sets of players are out on the field. Incidentally, both will be wearing black armbands this afternoon in remembrance for former chairman Sir Phillip Carter, who passed away at the age of 87 earlier this week. There'll be a minute's silence for Mr Carter and for the Valley Parade disaster before kickoff.

KICKOFF: Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaand we're off at Goodison Park. Let's go. We have a potential cracker on our hands here.

Worringly, Marouane Fellaini had plenty of space to have a shot there but his effort was blocked well before it could cause Tim Howard any problems. Still, it doesn't bode well in these early stages - and how Everton fans will hate if he scores.

What a start for the hosts as midfielder James McCarthy fires them into a 1-0 lead. It's a swift counter from a corner led by McCarthy, who played in Barkley on the left-hand side. His pass for Lukaku in the middle was cut out by Blind, but McCarthy, still with plenty to do, managed to run between Blind and McNair before casually slotting beyond David de Gea. Dodgy defending from the duo, but McCarthy won't care. Top finish there as well by the way.

CHANCE!!!!!!!!!!!!! Fellaini runs his hands through his big afro after missing a golden opportunity. He picks Jagielka's pocket but, with just Tim Howard to beat, sends his shot narrowly over the bar. It could, and absolutely should, be 1-1 my friends. What a chance to silence his critics.

Worryingly for United, Everton look really dangerous on the counter, with the jet-heeled Aaron Lennon proving a decent outlet on that right wing in the early stages.

BOOKING: The red mist is descending for Fellaini a little. He goes into the book for a foul on Barkley and he's walking a tightrope now for, hmm, about 78 minutes. It's a long time.

CHANCE! Good build-up play from United as they fashion a decent chance, but Blind, recalled to the first XI following an ankle injury, side-foots a tame effort straight at Howard from outside the box. That's two decent opportunities for the visitors.

Luke Shaw has looked realy lively on that left-hand flank for United. He's just darted past Seamus Coleman and pulled a decent ball back into the danger zone, with Howard off his line, but there was no red shirt on hand to convert. Decent opportunity that all the same.

HEADER! Chris Smalling might've done a bit better here, as the United defender flicks Juan Mata's excellent free kick at goal but Howard gathers. That's three fairly decent chances for United here, but they probably won't get another better than the one Fellaini missed.

Oh lord what's Ander Herrera up to here. The Spaniard fashions a fine chance inside the box but, instead of shooting, tries to work it back on to his right and the chance breaks down. The positive for United is that they've dominated things since going behind - but Everton still look a danger on the counter.

We've said this already, but it's worth repeating because United still haven't grasped that Everton have plenty of danger in the final third. They look dangerous going forward and it wouldn't surprise me if they scored again before half time.

SHOT! What a pass this is from Valencia, who finds Ashley Young on the edge of Everton's box but he curls narrowly over the bar.

Half-an-hour in then and Everton still leading courtesy of McCarthy's five-minute opener. United have responded well, with Fellaini, in particular, guilty of missing a fine chance, but still 1-0.

What a brilliant move this is, as Lennon brilliantly plays in Seamus Coleman on the right wing, but the Irishman's cross for the unmarked Lukaku is cut out by Chris Smalling's last-ditch clearance.

We said we could see Everton scoring again, and wouldn't you know, they've only gone and done it. It's Stones, who gets the run on Valencia and Fellaini from a corner to glance a header past De Gea via the underside of the crossbar. That's his first goal for the club and what a memorable one.

If you're keeping track then Fellaini, on his return to Goodison Park, has now missed a sitter, been booked and had a role to play in the concession of the second. It hasn't been a positive return to Merseyside for him, has it?

Roy Keane is in attendance today. Despite his long and illustrious United past, he'll be loving this scoreline, won't he.

That second goal has floored United. They responded well after the opener, but they've done absolutely nothing since Stones doubled the lead. They look like they want half time as soon as possible, but there's three minutes to wait.

Well, what a decent first half that was. United have possession, but Everton have the goals and it's a case of history repeating itself for Van Gaal, who watched his side boast 71% possession against Chelsea last week but lost. Goals from James McCarthy and John Stones have Everton in a relatively comfortable lead. United had no response after that second.

RESTART: Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaand we're back underway at Goodison Park. And there's one change to tell you about as Radamel Falcao replaces Fellaini.

SAVE! Good start from United forces Howard to make a good save, as the Everton stopper comes to deny Rooney from converting Chris Smalling's flick-on from a corner.

Brilliant tackle from Luke Shaw here to prevent Barkley from running through on goal, but the left-back comes off the worst as he tackles an accidental punch to the head for his bravery. He's back on his feet now after a bit of treatment, however.

Similar tempo and feel to this from the first half; United in control, but Everton look dangerous when they go forward. They've got more of the cutting edge in the final third I reckon.

CHANCE! Shaw, who was brilliant at Chelsea last week, is really good here again. He gallops down the left hand wing before pulling back for Juan Mata, whose first-time effort is blocked by Barry I think it was.

Everton continue to look really, really dangerous in the attack as Lukaku does a decent little step-over to deceive Smalling before drilling a low ball across the face of goal, but there's too much pace on the ball for Lennon to reach it.

There's an hour gone and dare I suggest that Everton are relatively comfortable. United are yet to really fashion anything in this second half, with their 4-4-2 yet to prove successful.

SUB: We've seen our second United sub, and it's Angel di Maria who replaces Juan Mata.

Really good run from Ross Barkley, who has been excellent. He cleverly avoids a few challenges but his shot had no pace on it to trouble De Gea.

BOOKING: Luke Shaw becomes the second player booked for cynically tugging back Lennon. Standard.

I don't want to tempt fate here Everton fans, but your side are looking very, very comfortable here. They don't look like conceding in truth, and I can easily see you's scoring another.

SUB: Martinez makes his first change now as Kevin Mirallas replaces the tiring Leon Osman. He's got grey hair so 90 minutes was never on the cards, was it?

CHANCE! Would've been a fine goal from Falcao, who we can't be too critical of here because it was a nothing ball from Di Maria, but the Colombian tried to lob Howard with a header, though the American keeper saved.

We said we could see another Everton goal, and we've just seen it. The flag goes up for Lukaku who is offside, but he's not interfering with play as Kevin Mirallas reacts quickest after Valencia stops dead, hand in the air appealing for offside, and gives De Gea the eyes with a cool finish. That should be that!

It's been a bit of a mare for United overall, with three fairly soft goals to give away. I don't know if Louis van Gaal is the hairdryer type, but surely something will be thrown in that dressing room at full time.

OVER THE BAR: Kinda says it all when Ander Herrera's shot, which was nowhere near going in, was still the closest that United have come in a really poor second half.

DISALLOWED GOAL! United fans - I've got some good news and bad news: the good news is that Falcao scored with a very fine finish, but the bad news is that it's been disallowed for offside. He took it around Howard and expertly found the corner with his weaker foot but it doesn't count.

SAVE! This is why De Gea is among the candidates for PFA Player of the Year tonight. The Spaniard maintains the three-goal deficit with a fine save to keep out Mirallas's stinging effort.

SUBS: Few subs to tell you about now as Rooney makes way for Van Persie, while Arouna Kone comes on for Lukaku I think. We await confirmation on that.

That's all she wrote here, folks. Everton record their biggest win over United for 23 years with a comfortable 3-0 win at Goodison.

James McCarthy started things off, before John Stones added another before the break to seal a 2-0 half-time lead. Then Kevin Mirallas came off the bench to inflict further misery with a nice little finish to seal the win.

Anywho, that's me done for another day folks, but we've still got analysis, ratings and plenty of reaction coming up. Stay tuned for LVG's quotes. They're bound to be fairly scathing, given the sloppy nature of the goals. See you next time!