Tottenham Hotspur are set to take on Everton in their second Premier League game of the season. The Lilywhites are coming off a disappointing 1-1 draw away at Leicester City in a game that they should have put to bed in the first half.
Familiar problems came back to haunt Spurs as they were not clinical in putting their chances away. Despite James Maddison having a sublime first half and conducting the orchestra, his attackers let him down with their finishing.
The likes of Dominic Solanke (who had an impressive debut otherwise) and captain Son Heung-min will be keen to ensure they finish their chances against a resolute Everton defence as getting past Jordan Pickford is never going to be an easy task.
That said, here is how we at TTLB think Ange Postecoglou could set his team up against Sean Dyche’s Everton when they come to the N17 on Saturday
Guglielmo Vicario is nailed in to start in between the posts. The Italian shot-stopper came under a lot of flak for his outburst towards Lucas Bergvall in the Foxes game. He will have his task cut out against Everton who are a huge threat from set-pieces, something the Italian has struggled with in the past.
Pedro Porro rolled his ankle in the game against the Foxes but should start if he is fit enough. However, the Spaniard might have to miss this game and Djed Spence could get his opportunity against Everton.
Cristian Romero and Micky van de Ven are likely to continue as the starting centre-backs despite Radu Dragusin making a case to come into the XI. The former will be hoping to have a better game than the one he did against Leicester. Destiny Udogie is locked in to start at left-back.
Rodrigo Bentancur suffered a horrific injury at the King Power and is surely missing this game against the Toffees. This should give Yves Bissouma the chance to start against Everton after serving his one-match suspension. However, we think Postecoglou could hand Archie Gray his first full start against Sean Dyche’s team.
James Maddison is locked in to start as the #10 and will be hoping to replicate his first-half masterclass against his former side. Captain Son Heung-min will start from the left. Dejan Kulusevski was unfortunate to not start against the Foxes and should replace Johnson from the start against Everton.
Dominic Solanke is surely going to start his second game in a row as the number nine and will want to get off the mark in a Spurs jersey. He will know that he should have put one of those chances away last time and let’s see if he can do it this time around.
From the bench, Bergvall, Werner, Richarlison and Johnson should get minutes in the second half. Wilson Odobert could also be in line for some debut minutes after his transfer from Burnley. It’s a big game for Ange and Tottenham who need to register a win and let’s hope we can get all three points against the Toffees.
