Tottenham vs Everton: injuries ravaged both teams
Tottenham returned to Premier League action last Saturday to play at home against Everton F.C. Spurs looked for inspiration from their Welsh sensation, Gareth Bale to repeat his same performance that he had given against Inter Milan when he scored his first
hat-trick for the club.
Spurs were four goals down against the reigning European champions in the first 35 minutes but Bale’s 2nd half hat-trick salvaged some pride for the London outfit as they lost 4-3 away from home.
European travel hasn’t proved to be a big distraction for Spurs as Harry Redknapps’ men beat Stoke City and Wolverhampton Wanderers straight after their European trips to Germany and Switzerland respectively.
Spurs assessed the fitness of all their players who played the tie at San Siro before naming the final squad for the match against Everton as fatigue could have been an issue against a good Everton side.
Everton are a side that is resurging and also brimming with confidence following their 2-0 victory in the Liverpool derby against bitter rivals, Liverpool at home.
Everton are once again ravaged by injuries though with Jack Rodwell, Marounne Fellaini, and Steven Pienaar, players vital and ever present in David Moyes’ plans missing out through different injuries.
Against Liverpool, David Moyes was forced to fill up the bench with Jose Baxter, Magaye Gueye and Shkodran Mustafi, all of whom are yet to play in the league this season. Right back, Seamus Coleman was forced to play wide in the midfield.
Tottenham, on the other hand, had injury woes of their own as they had to deal with long-term absentees Jermaine Defoe, Jamie O’Hara, Michael Dawson, and Jonathan Woodgate. There were also doubts about the availability of Ledley King and Younes Kabul. But
the London outfit had some deeper resources in terms of replacements than their Liverpool rivals.
Everton had been victorious in their last 4 visits to White Harte Lane but it was Spurs who had the last laugh when they won 2-1 thanks to goals from Russian hitman, Roman Pavlyuchenko and Croatian midfielder, Luka Modric.
Player watch:
Rafael Van der Vaart
Since his move from Real Madrid, the Dutchman has been the best signing of the league so far. His absence was felt in the game against Inter Milan due to suspension.
The 27 year old already has 3 goals in 4 home games and his eye for the goal was something vital against a resolute Toffee defense.
Gareth Bale
The Welsh star has been a revelation so far this season and his workrate and speed has been instrumental for spurs' campaign. The 21 year old has a knack of scoring goals at crucial stages, something that he proved against Inter Milan.
His ability to take on defenders and run them ragged has already been noticed by some of the top European clubs. His presence was yet another plus for Redknapps’ side.
Yakubu
The Nigerian was once considered to be one of the most fearsome strikers in the Premier League but injuries have hindered his performances. He now seems to be a shadow of his former self, finding first team opportunities hard to come by.
Everton desperately needed him to rediscover his touch if they were to get anything out of the game. He had shown some of his old self in the match against Liverpool and had to step up to the plate.
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