Key events
49 mins: Close! Everton nearly break the deadlock, George beats Gray on the left and dinks in a dangerous cross to the back stick… Barry heads goalwards and Kinsky has no idea where the ball is and is massicely fortunate that it strikes him on the back of the head and deflects wide. Nervy moments for Tottenham.
46mins: Peeeeeep. Here we go. Oh, what’s this – a shot on target by Tottenham!Sadly Fernandes’ effort is a grubber along the turf that barely reaches Pickford. The Spurs fans cheer ironically, they are well aware of the barren stats.
“Here is my early prediction” writes JP. “Teams will struggle to reach 70 points. The team getting 75 will surely be champions. Whether Arsenal get to ninety or they just about scrap to 70-75 remains to be seen.”
Both these sides would snatch your hand and plenty else off for that. Here the come for the second half, can Spurs end their goal drought? Can they even get a shot on target? Let’s find out.
“Very unusual to have gotten to half-time in an Everton MBM without a nervous/exasperated/very occasionally contented email from Mary Waltz on the West Coast of America” writes Justin Kavanagh. “I can understand those Spurs fans who have given up the ghost on this season already, but Everton seem to have steadied the ship, so presumably she’s got something more important on today.”
Jamie Redknapp has the audacity to disagree with Chris in Corfu and says on Sky Sports that “Savio has looked sharp, he’s been the bright one on the pitch.”
Half Time: Tottenham Hotspur 0-0 Everton
A scruffy half comes to a close with Everton’s corner being cleared away easily. Spurs go another half, three on the bounce now, without a shot on target. Everton have come back into it after being nowhere for the first fifteen minutes, De Zerbi’s men started quickly out of the blocks but just had no killer pass or end product.
46 mins: Close! Garner swings in the free kick without too much venom, it is on target but Kinsky can palm it wide without too much alarm. One more minute of added time and an Everton corner.
45 mins: Dewsbury-Hall attacks the Spurs box on the left flank and Fernandes gives away a needless free kick with his arms all over the Everton player. Free kick in a dangerous position for the visitors…
43 mins: “Savio is really frustrating, just like at City, his last ball is shockingly bad” chunters Chris in Corfu. Both sides have been guilty of sloppy play in the last twenty minutes. It hasn’t been a vintage half, the fast start has petered out into a turgid affair.
41 min: Everton have not been able to keep possession at all, a loose ball is sprayed out carelessly and Spurs are able to regroup from the back.
40 mins: Some boos and jeers from the home fans as they show their frustration. “I can’t help thinking that it might be handy if one of the vast legions of coaches, set piece experts and other blokes on the respective benches suggested maybe aiming the small white thing in the general direction of the big white things at either end of the pitch. Just a thought.”
have you done you coaching badges Stephen McCrossan?
38 mins: Still no shot on target for Spurs despite plenty of attacking posession as another goalless half ticks on.
37 mins: Gah. Not a good corner, over hit and curled straight out over the back post.
36 min: Fernandes shows some persistence in the right corner, after giving the ball away he wins it back, Tonali has a pop from range and a meaty deflection will see another Spurs corner.
34 mins: Closer! Robertson is played in on the overlap on the left flank after Marmoush slips him in… ah the cut it back isn’t accurate enough and Pickford boots it clear. That final ball is letting Spurs down.
32 mins: Here come Spurs again with Fernandes on the right…
30 mins: Spurs have a sustained spell of the ball again deep in the Everton half but they just can’t find a final ball and make a clear cut chance.
28 mins: Bruno Mateus Fernandes squiffs a shot wide from the corner.
27 mins: Tonali threads the needle with a lofted ball from midfield for Archie Gray to run onto, he takes it in his stride but Garner is there to hoover up albeit it results in a Spurs corner.
26mins: Everton are seeing much more of the ball and there’s a growing sense of unease around the home fans. Spurs should have got their noses in front in that frenetic first fifteen.
25 mins: Harrison Armstrong and Thierno Barry both have long shots blocked.
24 mins: It is now Tottenham to have a spell under the cosh.
22min: Thanks to those of you who spotted that Bruno Fernandes had crept into the Spurts team over Mateus. Have since corrected, long day for Jimbo, ok? Everton have much more possession now, Moyes has calmed down a bit. It was a rotten start from the visitors.
20 mins: Archie Gray hits the deck after what looks like a clash of heads. There’s a break in play whilst he is checked over. The camera zooms in on the wing clipped Richarlison chewing his hubba bubba in his civvies. Gray is up and good to go.
18min: Spurs press again but a loose touch from Sávio on the edge of the box sees another attack end in nowt.
17min: Tottenham are guilty of hanging on to the ball a little too long in attacking positions, have a crack lads!
14min: Everton win a corner, the first of the match. The ball pops out to Maitland-Niles on the edge of the box and he shanks wide with the left peg. Not this time.
12min: David Moyes is bellowing at his side to push up but they are under the cosh at the moment. Spurs’ goal drought ticks over the five and a half hour mark. Tick follows tock…
10 min: Everton have started so sluggishly and it feels like Spurs have to make this pressure count to get an early goal.
Fernandes shows off some lightning quick feet to dance his way into the Everton box but he dawdles instead of pulling the trigger and it fizzles out.
8min: “Hello from Pittsburgh!” writes Eric Peterson. “I’m looking forward to December, with the winter transfer window looming, and looking back to consider what was the bigger howler of the summer window: Everton failing to sign any cover for Thierno Barry, or Tottenham failing to even register Richarlison for the first half of the Premier League season.”
Fernandes has a dig but Branthwaite throws his body in the way to block. Gray then shoots from range and Pickford does a Pickford and punches it away.
6min: It’s all Tottenham in the early stages. Everton have barely had a touch.
5 min: Chance! Robertson delivers a free-kick deep into the box, a devilish ball in, It comes to Van Hecke at the back post and he blazes a half volley over the bar!
3min: Sávio shows his skills on the left and skins a couple of Everton defenders, his cross is blocked though and there’s no clear cut chance. The home fans are roaring their side on.
1min: Spurs have settled early and are pinging the ball around the edge of Everton’s box, the camera finds a couple of young fans in the crowd who hold up a sign: “Please score a goal”. Not sure who they support…
Peeeeeep! Everton kick off, let’s go.
The players emerge, handshakes and mascots all round. Spurs in white and Everton in their moss green away kit.
“It’s very simple, I am saying sack De Zerbi” emails AnhTuan Nguyen Huynh. You heard it here first.
The match reports from today’s earlier games have landed:
About that lack of goals…
Spurs have failed to score in any of their three Premier League games this season and thus if the Tofees keep a clean sheet today then it will be the first time Spurs have failed to score in their first four league games of a season.
No pressure then. Roberto De Zerbi’s side have not scored in 317 minutes (over five hours) of Premier League action.
David Moyes is talking to Sky Sports with about fifteen minutes to go until kick off. I’ll post a quote or two in a second – in the meantime get your noodle around these pre-match stats:
-
Tottenham have only lost one of their last 17 Premier League home games against Everton (W12 D4).
-
Everton lost both Premier League meetings with Tottenham last season by an aggregate score of 4-0, but have never lost three in a row to Spurs without scoring in their league history.
-
Everton are winless in their last six away league games, alternating between defeat (3) and a draw (3) each time.
-
Only Brighton (34) and Crystal Palace (32) have forced more high turnovers than Everton (28) in the Premier League this season, with the Toffees’ seven shots following a high turnover the joint-most so far.
-
Tottenham’s next home loss will be their 50th at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in the competition.
Elsewhere:
Here are the teams:
Tottenham Hotspur (4,2,3,1) : Kinsky, Gray, Van Hecke, Van de Ven, Robertson; Bentancur, Tonali; Sávio, Mateus Fernandes, Marmoush; Solanke.
Tottenham substitutes: Dúbravka, Tosin, Senesi, Ben Davies, Gallagher, Maddison, Bergvall, Kudus, Tel.
Everton: (4,2,3,1) Pickford, Maitland-Niles, Tarkowski, Branthwaite, Mykolenko; Harrison Armstrong, Garner; Brennan Johnson, Dewsbury-Hall, George; Barry.
Everton substitutes: Travers, Harry Tyrer/King listed by some feeds, Michael Keane, Jake O’Brien, Grealish, Dibling, Alcaraz, Hackney, Graham.
Match officials: Referee Darren England, assistants Scott Ledger and Alex James; fourth official Gavin Ward; VAR Paul Tierney, assistant VAR Adam Nunn.
Preamble
Hello and welcome to the MBM of Tottenham Hotspur v Everton. It’s 18th v 9th in the table and we can expect goals goals and more goals. Oh, actually, scratch that the statto informs me that these two sides are the two worst teams for chance quality. Hmm. I knew there was a reason they gave me this one.
Here’s a quick preview from Mr B Glendenning:
Only the most pessimistic home fans at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium will be gripped by anything resembling the kind of dread, anxiety and outright terror that accompanied Everton’s visit on the final day of last season, but the return of David Moyes’ side so early in the current campaign will still make for nervous viewing. With no goals and just one point on the board after three league games, fan faith in Roberto De Zerbi – and the hundreds of millions of pounds lavished upon new signings – has created a prevailing presumption that Tottenham will soon start firing on at least some, if not all, cylinders. In Everton, Spurs welcome a team whose record in this corner of north London is worse than any other top-flight side’s. Should they fail to beat a team who have taken just seven points from the past 51 available to them away at Tottenham, the sounds of early but outright mutiny are likely to be audible from the stands.”
Kick off 5.30pm
