Ian Dennis
Radio 5 live senior football reporter

Shame for Mason Holgate he’s on the bench for Everton as Gareth Southgate is at Goodison Park today.

The Eagles knock it long into the corner, looking for territory like Six Nations-style, and Jordan Ayew does well to hold it up before the Toffees steal possession.

Here we go, first game of the winter break...

Beautiful day on Merseyside, if a little chilly. Palace get this one under way.

Everton are unbeaten in the past 10 Premier League meetings, winning four, and have kept a clean sheet in each of the last three games.

The Toffees could equal their longest top-flight home winning streak versus Crystal Palace of three, recorded from 1979 to 1990.

However, Palace are vying to earn a fifth Premier League away win against the same opponent for the first time.

Michael Brown
Former Tottenham Hotspur midfielder on BBC 5 Live

You would never have thought Everton would be so close to the top six.

Questions were asked about their desire and their fight after they lost at Anfield at the start of December. Since Duncan Ferguson and Carlo Ancelotti took over, only Liverpool have a better record than Everton.

They’ve got a very experienced manager and are on the right track again.

Crystal Palace manager Roy Hodgson on his future: "The chairman and I had very positive discussions during the week.

"I have no reason to doubt the intentions of the club are any different now to how they were: to ask me to stay.

"I'll be having further discussions in the coming days and we'll see where that leads."

Image source, Getty Images

Image source, Getty Images

The players at Goodison Park are all sporting white t-shirts in support of the Heads Up campaign around mental health in football.

Today is the first of two Heads Up Weekends across the men's and women's game, aiming to start the biggest ever conversation around mental health through football.

The weekends are there to promote the power of talking to help mental health so we'll keep an eye on activities around the grounds this afternoon.

Must be about a week older than the side they named last week...

Mark Lawrenson
Ex-Liverpool defender on BBC Radio 5 Live

Everton's comeback from 2-0 down to beat Watford 3-2 last week was more than just a good result; it put everyone at the club in great spirits and it just adds to Carlo Ancelotti's impressive start as manager.

The Toffees look like a more refined team now too - they were a bit wishy-washy under their previous manager Marco Silva but there is a lot more substance to their performances now, and it appears they have a plan.

Palace worry me, though. They are just starting to sink and, although they were unbeaten around the turn of the year, a lot of those games ended up in draws.

While Everton are looking up the table, Palace are peering over their shoulders. They still have a cushion at the moment, but they need a win soon.

Lawro's prediction: 2-0

Four weeks to go, Marcus.

Mark Lawrenson
Ex-Liverpool defender on Football Focus

Don't underestimate the role Duncan Ferguson is playing, he started a mini-revival at Everton.

Everton manager Carlo Ancelotti: "The work I've done is to make the players comfortable when they play, to give them an idea and strong motivation.

"This is my job, honestly I am not able to change the character of the people.

"Of course to play in the Europa League could be a fantastic result for us for the next season but this is the target."

Image source, Getty Images

Dion Dublin
Former Man Utd striker on Football Focus

He has gone in and steadied everyone down, it's just knowing how to manage that quality - Ancelotti is keeping that moving and players look like they want to play and perform for him.

Alistair Magowan
BBC Sport at Goodison Park

Today's game at Goodison Park celebrates the 32nd year of Everton in the Community, after the players and manager Carlo Ancelotti met some of the people benefiting from the charity's work earlier this week.

"I am still learning about Everton," says Ancelotti in his programme notes. "But it was fantastic to see how EitC impacts so many lives in the city."

The Everton in the Community logo will also adorn the front of the players' shirts today instead of the usual sponsor.

Image source, Reuters

This is brilliant...

Theo Walcott scored the winner for Everton at Watford last week, and says Carlo Ancelotti's playful comment beforehand helped him relax in front of goal.

“Before the game, Carlo said to me, ‘Theo, you are allowed to score goals’,” he told the club website. “It made me laugh and relaxed me.

“I told him I was waiting for his permission to score.”

Three points at Goodison Park would take Crystal Palace, who have a six-point cushion above the relegation zone, above Everton and into the top half of the table.

Just a point would be enough to take them up three places.

Image source, .

Alistair Magowan
BBC Sport at Goodison Park

This is a big game for Everton, and Carlo Ancelotti knows it. In his press conference on Friday, he said it was a "really big opportunity" to climb the table, with Sheffield United their only rivals for a European spot in action this weekend.

Victory today would see Everton move into seventh place, level on points with the Blades and above Manchester United and Wolves.

That did not seem very likely back in December when Everton sat in the relegation zone following a 5-2 tonking by Liverpool. But a lot has changed since then.

...or even more?

The Toffees can move level with sixth-placed Sheffield United with victory over Crystal Palace this afternoon, one point behind fifth-placed Tottenham and five adrift of Chelsea in fourth.

Image source, .