Tottenham Hotspur will travel to Merseyside to play Everton this Sunday, in what is the first Premier League game under new coach Antonio Conte.
Venue: Goodison Park
Key Statistics
Everton have are winless in four PL games. They have also lost each of their last three Premier League matches which is as many as they had in their previous 12 in the competition.
The last time they lost four in a row in the competition was in October 2019 under Marco Silva.
They have lost nine home league matches in 2021, only ever losing 10 in a calendar year on three previous occasions – 1929, 1958 and most recently in 1993.
Tottenham Hotspur have scored only nine Premier League goals in their first 10 games this season; their fewest at this stage of a season since 2013-14 (also nine).
Their tally of 103 shots is also their fewest after 10 Premier League matches in any season since 2003-04.
In his previous stint in the Premier League with Chelsea, new Tottenham manager Antonio Conte remained unbeaten against Everton (W3 D1), with his side keeping a clean sheet in all four matches against the Toffees.
Everton manager Rafael Benítez’s first-ever Premier League game was a 1-1 draw against Spurs in August 2004. The Spaniard has lost his last four Premier League games against Spurs, having lost just two of his first 14 against them in the competition (W7 D5).
Tottenham striker Harry Kane has scored 11 goals in 12 Premier League appearances against Everton, including five braces. Only Alan Shearer against Leeds (6 braces, 1 hat-trick) has scored multiple goals in more games against a specific opponent in the competition.
Harry Kane has scored just one goal in nine Premier League appearances this season, his fewest goals across a nine-game span in the top-flight since scoring once in nine games between August and October 2015.
The England captain is averaging 2.3 shots per 90 minutes in the league this season, his lowest average in any Premier League season for Spurs in which he’s played more than once.
Head to head
They have won just one of their last 17 Premier League games against Tottenham (D8 L8), beating them 1-0 at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in September last season.
After losing three consecutive Premier League away games against Everton between January 2011 and December 2012, Spurs are unbeaten in their last eight league visits to Goodison Park (W3 D5).
Latest Performances in all competitions
Everton: L-L-L-D-W
Tottenham: W-L-W-L-L
Everton
After picking up four wins in their opening five games of the season, (D1) Everton’s form has gone downhill, leaving them in a bad position going into Round 11.
The Toffees have lost five and won one game in the seven games they have played since the unbeaten start of the season. Such form has led to several fans questioning their new coach Rafa Benitez.
The former Liverpool manager is in a bad situation having lost his last three games, conceding eight goals in that period. Their last 2-1 loss to Wolves pushed them further down the table into tenth place and closer to the relegation zone than the top.
They will be desperate to get back to winning ways and ensure that they don’t fall further behind.
Meanwhile, midfielder Fabian Delph could make his first start of the season against Tottenham after playing the second half in his side’s loss to Wolves. But Yerry Mina (thigh) remains out, while Lucas Digne, who missed the Wolves game, has trained this week and is expected to be available.
Star striker Dominic Calvert-Lewin (thigh) and midfielders Andre Gomes (calf) and Abdoulaye Doucoure (foot) are absent.
Possible Everton starting line-up
Jordan Pickford, Seamus Coleman, Michael Keane, Mason Holgate, Ben Godfrey, Alex Iwobi, Allan, Townsend, Jean-Phillipe Gbabim, Demarai Gray, Richarlison.
Tottenham Hotspur
Antonio Conte will look to begin his Premier League reign with Spurs with a win when he travels to Liverpool to take on familiar opponent Benitez.
The Italian oversaw his first game as Tottenham boss on Thursday when he led his side to a dramatic 3-2 win over Dutch side Vitesse. The win was just the second time the London side picked up all three points in their last five games.
Although he has had little time to prepare for this game, Conte will be desperate for his side to show glimpses of their quality and cut out the mistakes that nearly ruined their game against Vitesse in the Europa Conference League on Thursday.
The former Chelsea boss picked a full-strength squad for the game against Vitesse and will hope that his squad have recovered enough to go again on Sunday. However, defender Ryan Sessegnon and midfielder Bryan Gil (both hamstring) are both expected to miss this game.
Possible Tottenham starting line-up
Hugo Lloris, Eric Dier, Cristián Romero, Ben Davies, Sergio Reguilon, Emile Hojbjerg, Oliver Skipp, Emerson Royal, Lucas Moura, Son Heung-min, Harry Kane.
Prediction
Everton 1-2 Tottenham
