Phil Kirkbride: With Rafa Benitez unwilling to confirm the identity of all five of players who are isolating, our team selection for the opening game of the season has been made more difficult.
James Rodriguez has been ruled out but the Everton boss says the returning Richarlison and Dominic Calvert-Lewin are fit to play.
Benitez also said two of Moise Kean, Andre Gomes and Jean-Philippe Gbamin are also having to isolate, but he would not elaborate.
With all of that in mind, Everton's attack should see Richarlison, Demarai Gray and Andros Townsend play in support of Calvert-Lewin, with a midfield two of Allan and Abdoulaye Doucoure behind them.
My team (4-2-3-1): Pickford, Coleman, Keane, Godfrey, Digne, Allan, Doucoure, Townsend, Gray, Richarlison, Calvert-Lewin.
Connor O'Neill: The problem in predicting Everton's team for this afternoon's clash with Southampton is that we don't yet know who the other four players are in isolation.
Rafa Benitez has already confirmed that James Rodriguez is one of them, but the identity of the other four remains unknown.
However, self-isolation issues aside, the back five pretty much picks itself with Jordan Pickford in goal, and Seamus Coleman, Ben Godrey, Michael Keane and Lucas Digne making up the back four.
Allan and Abdoulaye Doucoure are shoe-ins given how instrumental they were last season, while new signing Demarai Gray should get the nod in front of them.
While out wide, Richarlison should operate on the left, Andros Townsend on the right, and Dominic Calvert-Lewin up top.
My team (4-4-1-1): Pickford, Coleman, Godfrey, Keane, Digne, Townsend, Allan, Doucoure, Richarlison, Gray, Calvert-Lewin.
Mark Wakefield: First day of the new season, and it’s here where we’ll get to see what Benitez’s Everton will look like.
There will be some absences due to some players self isolating, with James Rodriguez confirming that he is one of five unavailable for that reason.
As we don’t know who the others are, this team may or may not contain players who are actually available to face Southampton.
One player who may be in contention is Richarlison, who only recently returned to Merseyside after featuring for Brazil at the Olympics.
Given he’s played a lot of football without any rest over the past 12 months, it may not be a smart move to throw him into a Premier League game right from the start.
New signings Demarai Gray and Andros Townsend would get in my team, as would Jean-Philippe Gbamin in midfield.
The rest of the team, fitness providing, pretty much picks itself.
My team (4-2-3-1): Pickford; Coleman, Keane, Mina, Digne; Gbamin, Doucoure; Townsend, Davies, Gray; Calvert-Lewin.
