Everton return to Premier League football against Tottenham in north London on Saturday, aiming to bounce back to winning ways.
The Merseysiders lost 2-1 to Manchester United at Goodison Park last weekend which ended their seven-match unbeaten run in the Premier League. The defeat to Man United left them 12th in the table, six points behind the top four places.
Frank Lampard will hope his boys deliver an immediate response against Spurs, who are third in the table and head into this fixture off the back of a thrilling 3-2 Champions League win over Eintracht Frankfurt.
Everton Team News
Yerry Mina and Mason Holgate joined the team training last week but the duo is still not ready to be included in the match squad.
Meanwhile, Frank Lampard will have to make do without Anthony Gordon, who will serve a one-game suspension after picking up his fifth yellow card of the season against Man United.
Andros Townsend and Ben Godfrey both remain long-term casualties for the Toffees.
Predicted Everton Lineup vs Tottenham (4-3-3)
Goalkeeper
Jordan Pickford is the undisputed Everton’s No.1 and should start between the sticks against Spurs. He will be raring to keep a clean sheet after conceding twice against Man United last weekend.
Defence
In front of Pickford, summer signings Conor Coady and James Tarkowski have formed a formidable central defensive partnership and are set to start again in the Everton lineup. The duo is one of the prime reasons for Everton’s joint-best defensive record in the top flight so far this term.
Seamus Coleman and Vitalii Mykolenko will operate from full-back positions in the Everton lineup, looking to provide width and attacking impetus down the flanks. Both Coleman and Mykolenko will need to be at their best to nullify the threat posed by Spurs’ wing-backs.
Midfield
Alex Iwobi, Idrissa Gueye and Amadou Onana should form the Everton midfield on Saturday. Iwobi has been one of the bright spots for the Toffees under Lampard and will be confident of getting himself again on the scoresheet after scoring a spectacular goal against Man United.
Onana has added a lot of physicality, bite and solidity to the midfield, and the presence of Gueye just in front of the backline will allow the Belgian to maraud forward and attack crosses put inside the box.
Attack
Anthony Gordon will be a big miss for Everton, but Lampard does have options to replace him. Dwight McNeil could take the right-wing spot in the Everton lineup in Gordon’s absence, whereas Demarai Gray continues to operate down the left.
Lampard does have the option to start with the fit-again Dominic Calvert-Lewin but there is a chance of him sticking with Neal Maupay up top in the Everton lineup. Maupay’s link-up play with Gray and McNeil and arching runs in behind the Spurs’ back three could cause problems for the hosts.