Spurs' dominant aerial ability under Thomas Frank brought Everton crashing down to reality at Hill Dickinson Stadium. The visitors handed the Merseyside club's first defeat at the new stadium thanks to a trio of headers, two from the excellent defender, to rise to third in the top flight and maintain their strong performances on the road.
Set-Piece Mastery Secures Victory
A clear gap at the home ground is sharply different to the ruthless efficiency of Frank’s team away from home. The Dutch defender scored from a pair of set-pieces before replacement Pape Matar Sarr ended all hopes of an Everton recovery with another near-post nod in the dying moments. Considering the glaring absence of a quality striker in the Everton squad, the chance of an Everton comeback was unlikely despite the probings of their creative players. That makes 13 points from a possible 15 for Frank’s side in away matches this season.
Game Key Moments
The match was defined by corners and the defender's domineering presence at each end of the pitch. The hosts matched Spurs for enterprising approach work but had no solution to the excellence of the visitors’ set-piece delivery or their skipper’s aerial strength. The boos that met the half-time whistle were directed firmly at referee Craig Pawson, however.
Grealish almost started where he left off last time out at the venue by putting his team the lead from close range. The superb Ndiaye scorched past the full-back to create a chance for the striker but, after the unfortunate forward failed to connect, Jack Grealish appeared at the back post and saw a shot on target stopped on the line by the defender. Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall sliced the rebound over the bar.
The midfield duo both tested the backline as an open, flowing game allowed the engine rooms to shine. But it was a centre-back who took centre stage. From a the winger's corner swept loftedly to the back post, Bentancur guided the ball into the mixer with his shoulder for Van de Ven to head home from point-blank range.
That marked the initial strike Everton have conceded from a dead-ball situation all season and Spurs’ first attempt on target. They then conceded two set-piece goals in first-half stoppage time when the away side's accuracy under Frank hurt Everton again. Porro was the assister, now from the left flank with a excellent, dangerous corner that cried out for a conversion. Van de Ven applied it once the curling cross flew over the centre-half and before the goalkeeper's hands could connect. The defender’s first-half double must have come from a combined distance of two yards out.
Controversial Call and Late Strike
Tottenham's second arrived during an extended period of time added on mainly for the decision to disallow a towering header by the defender moments after Van de Ven’s opener. The Everton defender believed he'd scored from a well-taken set-piece, taken by the midfielder, and a headed effort that gave Guglielmo Vicario little hope in the Tottenham net. The home fans' joy were diluted when the video assistant referee instructed Pawson to check the pitch-side monitor.
The joy turned to dismay when the match official ruled that Ndiaye and Grealish were both in an offside position and impeding the goalkeeper. Both players were clearly in an illegal spot when the defender made contact but the degree to which they affected the goalkeeper was very questionable. Pawson’s reasoning was unheard amid the jeers that drowned him out.
Everton responded well to the blows, particularly after the restart. The forward, who failed to read an inviting cross along the six-yard box from the attacker in the opening period, almost atoned with an overhead kick from the Senegal international’s cross. The keeper produced an excellent reflex save to deny the striker. Tottenham's commitment to a shut-out was exemplified by the midfielder throwing himself in the way of the midfielder's volley in the latter stages. The Brazilian should have increased the away team's lead when a lobbed pass beat Tarkowski and left him through on goal, but the England keeper spread himself well to stop the former Everton striker.
Richarlison was key in Tottenham's third strike, though, cushioning a nod from a further precise cross into the danger area for Sarr to nod past the keeper.
