Matchday: Everton 1 – 1 Tottenham
By Ryan Wrenn
Tottenham traveled to Everton and earned a point in a harrowing 1-1 draw.
Everton’s defense looked porous early and seemed particularly eager to concede possession to Tottenham. The ball was expertly recycled by the central midfield pairing of Eric Dier and Tom Carroll – the latter much more disciplined than he’s looked before this season – but attempts to break through for a goal were unsuccessful.
The closest Tottenham came was a free shot given to Harry Kane from outside of Everton’s box which pinged off the far post just inches shy of deflecting into goal.
A goal felt inevitable, though few would have guessed it would have come from an Everton side that had hardly attempted to get forward, much less take a shot.
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Tom Cleverly found himself with the ball in the left midfield and punted it accurately to Romelu Lukaku in Tottenham’s box. The big Belgian headed the ball down to an unmarked Aaron Lennon, who uncharacteristically sent an excellent shot with his first touch past Hugo Lloris.
Lennon, of course, was late of Tottenham, where he spent ten years of his professional career. His start here was a surprise – perhaps motivated by some psychological factors – but full credit to him as he took his chance when it came.
In terms of tone, nothing changed following the foal. Tottenham continued to dominate possession and chances, with an equalizer denied to them when Ben Davies’ shot from a corner richocheted off the same post Kane hit earlier in the half.
It seemed as if Tottenham would retire to the dressing room at the half being down a goal, though Toby Alderweireld and Dele Alli were not to content to leave the pitch like that. The centre-back’s long ball upfield found a dashing Alli in Everton’s box, where the 19-year-old expertly controlled the ball before converting it past Tim Howard.
The leveler galvanized Everton in the second half. The Blues were much more positive and were no longer content to allow Tottenham to pass the ball around patiently. It was a switch broadly reminiscent of the change after the interval when Newcastle visited White Hart Lane in December.
Everton pushed up from midfield thanks in part to Ross Barkley’s tireless dribbling. The wide players found more joy in their lanes to the extent that Everton coach Roberto Martínez swapped out the goalscorer Lennon for Gerard Deulofeu on the right flank. The Spaniard’s introduction allowed even more penetration, though Tottenham’s defense remained strong. Lloris in particularly seemed up for the game, turning in some fine saves and managing his box as well as he had all season.
For all their stumbles recently, Everton’s offense has really only improved. The connection between Lukaku and Barkley in particular gave Tottenham trouble.
In offense, the Tottenham team that was so impressive in the first half had all but evaporated by the final ten minutes. Taking less and less simple passes in favor of something more fancy, Everton found it easier to hold off Tottenham’s top three than they had all game.
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A draw seems a fair result seeing as how both sides had their own periods of exception quality. If anything, Tottenham might feel the more fortunate of the two teams after enduring a barrage of passes and shots inside their own third for multiple periods in the second half.
Tottenham were never in danger of losing their hold on fourth place – or advancing higher, for that matter – though a win would have taken them right into the heat of the race for the title in the top three. Instead, they’ll have to content themselves with the point.