Match Preview
Everton travel to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium looking to lift themselves back up after disappointment in the Carabao Cup on Tuesday evening with what would be a fourth successive win in the Capital.
The Blues were beaten on penalties by Fulham and denied an all-Merseyside semi-final against Liverpool when Amadou Onana and Idrissa Gueye failed to convert on the shootout on Tuesday but the focus now shifts back to the Premier League and the ongoing quest to avoid relegation following the points deduction imposed by the Premier League last month.
Over the last 10 League matches, Everton have been in Champions League-qualifying form but they face what is arguably their most difficult assignment since the Anfield derby in October when they face a Tottenham side that has been rebounding from a loss of form and an injury crisis of their own.
Ange Postecoglu’s team was already disrupted by the loss of key players like James Maddison, Ivan Perisic and Rodrigo Bentancur when they had two men sent off against Chelsea at the start of last month and went down to a 4-1 home defeat.
That was the North Londoners’ first defeat of the campaign and they followed it with two more against Wolves and Aston Villa but so far this month, they have held Manchester City to a 3-3 draw, thrashed Newcastle and won at Nottingham Forest.
Their defeat on home turf to West Ham two weeks ago, however, offers hope to Everton that Spurs can be beaten even as some of their injured players start to return, Richarlison has started to score goals and they look more the outfit that started the season in such red hot form.
Postecoglu will also be without Destiny Udogie and key midfield man, Yves Bissouma through suspension, while Maddison, Perisic, Bentancur, Ryan Sessegnon and Micky can de Ven are ruled out through injury. Giovani Lo Celso and Brennan Johnson are doubtful.
For the Toffees, Vitalii Mykolenko looks set to be passed fit. He missed the win at Burnley a week ago and the Carabao Cup tie with an apparent groin issue but Sean Dyche confirmed in his press conference today that the Ukrainian is “back in the thinking” for this weekend.
Seamus Coleman and Ashley Young won’t be fit, however, and Abdoulaye Doucouré also remains out, with the Frenchman unlikely to feature against Manchester City on the other side of Christmas either.
A fully fit and firing Blues team would fancy themselves to pull off what would be a first Everton win at Tottenham in front of a crowd since 2009. However, the absence of Doucouré removes a key component of the attack and tends to leave Dominic Calvert-Lewin isolated and less effective leading the line.
Jack Harrison and James Garner have been deployed in the role behind the striker in recent weeks while Arnaut Danjuma offers a possible alternative based on his cameo against Fulham in the Cup but Dyche may err on the side of midfield solidity and partner Idrissa Gueye with Amadou Onana and push Garner into the “10” position once more.
And if Tuesday’s game has any bearing on the manager’s thinking, he could hand Calvert-Lewin a breather and play Beto from the start. The Portuguese is looking increasingly at home in England as his fitness and experience of the Premier League builds and he would, no doubt, relish the opportunity.
At the back, Mykolenko’s presence would allow Dyche to retain a conventional back four, with James Tarkowski and Jarrad Branthwaite restored to the centre.
Kick-off: 3 pm, Saturday 23 December 2023
Referee: Stuart Atwell
VAR: Michael Oliver
Last Time: Tottenham Hotspur 2 – 0 Everton
Predicted Line-up: Pickford, Patterson, Tarkowski, Branthwaite, Mykolenko, Gueye, Onana, Harrison, McNeil, Garner, Beto