Match preview: Everton v Spurs (new dawn!)
Venue: Goodison Park, Everton. Kick-off 2pm.
After the Messiah’s 3-2 win over Vitesse, Antonio Conte gets his first crack at the Premier League, away at Goodison Park. At the same time, the Toffees are seeking to end a run of three straight Premier League defeats.
The Rafael Benitez reign is starting to show cracks. Their latest upset was against Wolverhampton Wanderers, who inflicted a third consecutive defeat on them during Monday night’s encounter at Molineux.
Defeat in the West Midlands followed previous zero-pointers with Watford and West Ham United for the under-performing blues of Liverpool, who have now dropped to 10th in the rankings after winning just one of their last six in the top flight.
We mustn’t forget that Everton inflicted a 1-0 win over Nuno’s Tottenham side in the capital last season. Still, that triumph represents their only victory from their previous 17 Premier League games against us. Since then, we have gone unbeaten in our last eight top-flight games at Goodison Park.
As for our game against Vitesse, goals, red cards, etc., we had it all. Conte’s three-at-the-back system appeared to be working wonders against Vitesse as Son, Lucas Moura and an own goal from Jacob Rasmussen saw us race into a three-goal lead before the 30-minute mark. Nevertheless, Vitesse returned fire with Rasmussen at the right end of the pitch before Matus Bero scored the game’s fifth goal before halftime. After a frenetic second half saw three red cards brandished, we ultimately held on. Victory on his debut cannot be sniffed at as the Conte prepares to return to hostile territory.
Nuno’s team capitulated against Manchester United, Conte takes over with his side sat ninth in the Premier League table, and they sit just one point and one place above Everton ahead of this game.
We suffered three defeats from our last four Premier League games of the Santo era (conceding nine goals in that miserable run). Still, Conte knows a thing or two about shutting up shop in this fixture, with his former Chelsea side not conceding once against Everton under his tutelage.
Everton Premier League form:
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Everton form (all competitions):
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Tottenham Hotspur Premier League form:
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Tottenham Hotspur form (all competitions):
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Team News
Everton
Will be without mainstays Abdoulaye Doucoure and Dominic Calvert-Lewin for the time being, while Lucas Digne’s muscle injury will need to be assessed. Andre Gomes is also a doubt, but Yerry Mina will be fit to return from his thigh injury.
Jean-Philippe Gbamin was fit enough to start and play 45 minutes against Wolves but may now make way for Fabian Delph, and Anthony Gordon is also pushing for a recall to the first XI.
Spurs
We are expected to make do without Bryan Gil and Ryan Sessegnon (as usual) once more, while Cristian Romero’s red card in the Conference League means nothing for this game.
Conte opted for a near full-strength XI on Thursday night, and the bulk of that team should retain their places here, with Ben Davies and Eric Dier continuing in the back three, but Davinson Sanchez is an option.
Harry Kane will hope to build on his tally of 11 goals from 12 top-flight games against Everton.
My possible starting lineup:
Lloris; Dier, Romero, Sanchez; Emerson, Hojbjerg, Skipp, Reguilon; Lucas, Kane, Son
Thoughts
Before Nuno was sacked and Conte put in his place, I would have said that we would have probably lost against Vitesse (or, at the very least, got a draw) and also against Everton. Now I believe we can beat Everton, and convincingly.
Everton have hardly inspired confidence in recent weeks, and they certainly won’t know what to expect against us… in fact, we don’t even know what to expect from our new coach with the same old Nuno players.
Prediction: 3-1 with Kane and Son scoring.
MATCH FACTS
Head-to-head
We have won 27 Premier League games against Everton, more than against any other side.
Everton’s only victory in the past 17 league meetings came at our last season.
We are unbeaten on our last eight top-flight visits to Goodison Park.
Everton
Everton are aiming to avoid a fourth straight league defeat for the first time since October 2019.
As a manager, Rafael Benitez could equal his longest Premier League losing streak, set on three occasions while at Newcastle.
A 10th defeat of 2021 at Goodison Park would match the club record for most home losses in a calendar year, set in 1929, 1958 and 1993.
Spurs
Antonio Conte is the fourth person to manage Spurs and Chelsea in the Premier League, emulating Glenn Hoddle, Andre Villas-Boas and Jose Mourinho.
Villas-Boas is the only one of Spurs’ last seven managers (including caretakers) not to win their first Premier League match in charge of the club.
We have only scored nine league goals this season, our fewest after 10 games since 2013-14.
We haven’t had a shot on target in our last two hours and 16 minutes of football since a Harry Kane effort in the 44th minute against West Ham.
So, that is it…
I’ve put my head on the line and said we will win by 3 goals (hopefully more), but whichever way we look at it, our future is a lot rosier under Conte than it did under hapless.
COYS!
Glenn
My name is Glenn Renshaw.
I am currently a Premium Season Ticket holder (West Stand) in the new stadium. Before that – at White Hart Lane – a season ticket holder in various parts of the ground (mainly in the North stand).
Before becoming a season ticket holder, I stood on the shelf and various other parts of the ground since the 1950s. In 1987 I became one of the first to hold a Spurs Membership card. I was also a life long member of the Spurs supporters club (now defunct).
I go to all home, away and abroad matches.
I was born in 1955, Edgware, London (it was in the late 50s – as a baby – that my dad took me to Spurs to initiate me). I currently live in Berkshire.
I also collect all Spurs books (and have everyone printed), Spurs handbooks (from 1920s onwards, Spurs programmes (since the 40s).
Previously, I wrote for Spurs Fanzines: The Spur, Spur of the Moment, My Eyes have seen the Glory and various other Spurs fanzines’. I also wrote for the SpursWeb app & its website.
I currently write and work for spursnetwork.com and its website. I write its Reviews & Match reports and a lot more.
My other interests are; reading, history, social history, Politics, going to the gym, wine, going out for a meal, music (all sorts), writing, theatre, concerts, holidays, socialising etc.
I have been writing blogs/ articles since 1989
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