Good afternoon! Thank you very much for joining
Sports Mole for today's late Premier League kickoff as
Tottenham Hotspur host
Everton at Wembley!
These two sides come into this match in contrasting form, and Spurs in particular need a win to avoid losing further ground in the top-four race this season. Everton have hit a slump following a good start to life under Sam Allardyce, so they too will be desperate for a return to winning ways here.
We'll have a close look at both teams a little later, but first let's check out the team news...
TOTTENHAM STARTING XI: Lloris; Aurier, Sanchez, Vertonghen, Davies; Dier, Dembele, Eriksen, Son, Dele; Kane
TOTTENHAM SUBS: Vorm, Trippier, Walker-Peters, Wanyama, Sissoko, Lamela, Llorente
EVERTON STARTING XI: Pickford; Kenny, Holgate, Jagielka, Martina; McCarthy, Gueye, Bolasie, Rooney, Sigurdsson; Tosun
EVERTON SUBS: Robles, Schneiderlin, Williams, Lennon, Niasse, Calvert-Lewin, Lookman
What can we make of those two teams, then?
Well, we will get to Everton and a debut for their newest arrival in a short while, but let's start with the hosts today as Tottenham recall a host of big guns after resting them in the FA Cup win over Wimbledon last weekend.
Mauricio Pochettino has made eight changes to that team, with captain Hugo Lloris and the attacking midfield trio of Dele Alli, Christian Eriksen and Son Heung-min all amongst those to return to the side. All seven players on the bench today started last weekend, but drop back out here.
Son has been in particularly good form for Spurs of late, with Dele Alli and Christian Eriksen being forced to take a back seat to the South Korean in recent weeks despite some decent displays of their own.
Indeed, a goal for Son today would see him become only the second Tottenham player to score in five consecutive Premier League home games - a feat not even Harry Kane has achieved yet. Indeed, the only player to do that for Spurs in the past was Jermain Defoe between November and December 2004.
Kane may not have matched that particular achievement, but he goes into this game on the verge of an even more impressive one. A goal today would see him equal
Teddy Sheringham as the club's highest ever Premier League goalscorer on 97, and he has done it in significantly fewer games too.
The England international has a good record against Everton too, scoring twice in both of his last two league appearances against the Toffees. If Spurs can keep hold of him then there is no reason why Kane couldn't set an unreachable tally for the club.
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Serge Aurier returns at right-back today in place of Trippier, while Sanchez and Davies are also restored to the back four alongside Vertonghen, who joins Dembele and Kane as the only players to keep their place from the FA Cup break.
There is only one change from Tottenham's most recent Premier League outing, though, with Dembele replacing Sissoko in a holding role alongside Eric Dier.
As for Everton, the headline news is of course that Cenk Tosun makes his debut for the club, just over a week after completing a £27m move from Besiktas.
Sam Allardyce has regularly mentioned that scoring goals has been his side's biggest problem so far this season, and he has wasted no time in throwing Tosun into the mix this afternoon. He is straight in from the start, replacing Calvert-Lewin in the team from the FA Cup defeat to Liverpool.
Tosun's stats certainly suggest that he will be able to help Everton increase their goalscoring ability, with the Turkey international having scored 14 times for Besiktas this season before his switch to Goodison Park - including four in the Champions League.
Tosun also hit the 20-goal mark in the league last season to help Besiktas retain their title, and since the beginning of last term he has found the back of the net 38 times in 71 games across all competitions.
As an added bonus, Tosun also has experience of scoring a decisive goal against Tottenham, netting the only one of the game in a 1-0 Europa League victory in 2014 which saw Besiktas beat Spurs to top spot in Group C.
Tosun will be supported by the attacking trio of Bolasie, Rooney and Sigurdsson, the latter of whom scored the equaliser against Liverpool last Friday before Virgil van Dijk's late winner.
Behind them is the slightly surprising inclusion of Idrissa Gueye, who was expected to miss this game with an ongoing hamstring problem. However, he has recovered in time to feature from the start, replacing Schneiderlin in the XI today.
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Sam Allardyce has also notably opted to stick with the same back four that started against Liverpool at Anfield, which means that Ashley Williams must once again make do with only a place on the bench.
Captain Phil Jagielka gets another start alongside Holgate - who was of course involved in a controversial incident with Roberto Firmino last time out - while Kenny is on the right and Martina continues on the left. Pickford, as ever, is between the sticks.
Allardyce has certainly improved that defensive aspect of Everton, but the form book suggests heavily that Spurs will win this match and
Mauricio Pochettino's side will go in confident of picking up all three points following their recent return to winning ways.
Spurs stalled a bit during the latter months of 2017 to slip out of the Champions League places and, while they have not yet managed to work their way back into the top four, their run of 16 points from their last seven league games is second to only Man City in that time.
It would take an unlikely victory by five goals or more for Spurs to end the day in the Champions League places, but any victory would see them move level on points with Liverpool and pile the pressure on the Reds ahead of their Anfield showdown with the Manchester City juggernaut tomorrow.
On the flip side, a draw or defeat could see them end the weekend down in sixth place should Arsenal - who are currently two points behind their North London neighbours - also win.
Spurs are still five points and two places worse off than at the same stage of last season, but they are seemingly heading back in the right direction now with only one defeat in their last 10 games across all competitions.
That run - which stretches back to November - includes seven victories and the only defeat in that time came against Manchester City, since when they have won four and lost none of their last five games.
In the Premier League alone that unbeaten streak sits at four games and only one loss in their last eight outings, although they were held to a disappointing 1-1 draw by London rivals West Ham United in their most recent league games.
The Hammers are, incidentally, one of only two visiting teams to have beaten Spurs at Wembley across all competitions so far this term, doing so with a 3-2 triumph in the EFL Cup.
Indeed, Spurs have banished any talk of a Wembley hoodoo with 11 wins from their last 15 home games across all competitions, while they come into this match unbeaten in their last nine here at their temporary home.
Tottenham's only two home defeats this term both came in London derbies - against Chelsea and West Ham - and after getting off to a shaky start at the national stadium they now finally appear to be making it feel like home.
Tottenham's only Premier League defeat at Wembley came in their first home match of the season when they were beaten 2-1 by Chelsea, since when they have won six and drawn four during a 10-game unbeaten run.
Spurs only picked up two points from their first three league home games this season - dropping more points in that time than they did throughout the entirety of their final season at White Hart Lane, but since then they have picked up 20 points from the 24 on offer.
Including last season's unbeaten campaign at White Hart Lane, Tottenham have now lost just one of their last 30 Premier League home games stretching back to May 2016, winning 23 of those and only being beaten by the defending champions this season.
Spurs still only boast the sixth-best home record in the division, but they are slowly turning Wembley into a fortress like they did with White Hart Lane.
Is it up to Everton to storm that fortress today, although on current form you'd have to think that Sam Allardyce would be happy to sit back and try to come away with a solid draw.
It is a tactic which has served Allardyce well countless times throughout his career, but the first murmurs of his 'negative' style not being suited to Everton have just begun to be heard amongst the Toffees fans following their recent slump in form.
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Allardyce was certainly not universally acclaimed by Everton fans when he was appointed after a long and drawn-out search for a manager, so it may be that he has to work even harder to win many of them over, while any bad spell will likely be magnified in his early days at the helm.
Everton come into this match winless in their last five outings across all competitions, losing their last three at the hands of Bournemouth, Manchester United and Liverpool, but perhaps an even more telling statistic is that they have scored only two goals in that time.
The addition of Cenk Tosun should help Everton in that regard, while Allardyce has also confirmed that he is interested in Arsenal's Theo Walcott, but it is worth remembering that before this three-game losing streak, Allardyce had overseen an immediate upturn in form at the club.
Since it was announced that he would be becoming manager Everton went on an eight-game unbeaten streak to soar up the table, from the relegation zone to the top half, so their position now compared to what it was before Allardyce is certainly a major improvement.
Even so, Everton are not quite out of trouble yet despite sitting in the relatively lofty position of ninth, with just seven points separating them from the relegation zone - the same distance by which Everton trail seventh-placed Burnley.
The Toffees have picked up just two points from the last 12 on offer in the league, scoring only one goal in that time, and another defeat here would make it three league losses on the bounce for the first time since September and only the second time all season.
Defeat would also see Everton lose their opening three games of a calendar year for the first time since 1960, and fans will not exactly be encouraged by their away record - despite an improvement on that front under Allardyce.
Across all competitions Everton have won two, drawn two and lost two of their six away games since Allardyce's appointment, which is a mixed record but a significantly better one than their run of just one win in the 20 away games which preceded his arrival.
Everton won only two Premier League away games throughout the whole of 2017, and 2018 does not exactly get off to an easy start on the road either with Tottenham today and Arsenal to come in their next away outing.
A 1-0 victory at Newcastle exactly a month ago is Everton's only away league win in their last 19 attempts, with nine draws and nine defeats in that time too. Only Southampton, West Brom and Stoke have picked up fewer points on the road this season.
The Toffees' away record against elite opposition is even more worrying heading into this game, with a 2013 victory at Manchester United their only victory away to one of the Premier League's 'big six' in their last 43 attempts, drawing 15 and losing 27 of those.
Indeed, this season they are yet to beat any of the teams who began the weekend ahead of them in the table, drawing three and losing seven of their 10 such outings.
PREDICTION: Right, we're 10 minutes away from kickoff at Wembley, which means that it is time for a prediction!
Allardyce rarely makes it easy for big teams when looking to grind out a result, but the form book clearly points to a Tottenham win and, with home advantage also in their favour, I am backing Pochettino's side to come out on top this evening.
SPORTS MOLE SAYS: Tottenham 2-0 Everton
Tottenham have dominated the recent history of this fixture too, winning five and drawing five of their last 10 Premier League meetings with Everton - their longest unbeaten streak against the Toffees since a run of 13 between 1997 and 2003.
Indeed, in the Premier League era Spurs boast 24 victories over Everton, which is more than they have managed against any other team.
The most recent of those came at Goodison Park in September when Tottenham put in a very convincing display against a disappointing Everton side, running out 3-0 winners courtesy of a Kane brace either side of a Christian Eriksen strike.
Tottenham also won the corresponding fixture last season by scoring three goals including a Kane brace, although Everton mustered two in reply on that occasion with Alli, Lukaku and Enner Valencia also on the scoresheet.
This will be Everton's first visit to face Tottenham since they moved to Wembley, but they haven't won away to Spurs since November 2008, drawing three and losing six of their league and cup meetings since then.
The Toffees' last three visits to Wembley have also ended in defeat, all by a 2-1 scoreline against Chelsea in the 2009 FA Cup final, Liverpool in the 2012 FA Cup semi-final and Manchester United in the 2016 FA Cup semi-final.
Right, the players are out and we're almost ready to get going at Wembley now. Let's have a quick reminder of the team news before we do get started...
TOTTENHAM STARTING XI: Lloris; Aurier, Sanchez, Vertonghen, Davies; Dier, Dembele, Eriksen, Son, Dele; Kane
EVERTON STARTING XI: Pickford; Kenny, Holgate, Jagielka, Martina; McCarthy, Gueye, Bolasie, Rooney, Sigurdsson; Tosun
KICKOFF! Here we go! Everton get us underway at Wembley!
Kenny is a little fortunate to avoid a very early booking here as he dives in from behind on Son, bringing him down. It is a poor challenge and cynical too, but referee Craig Pawson opts for leniency.
Tottenham are seeing the lion's share of possession in these early stages, as expected. Everton have quickly set out with bodies behind the ball.
Half a chance for Spurs to break forward as Aurier picks the ball up in space on the right flank, but the Everton defence are quick to scramble back and get in position again.
Tosun almost has his first sight of goal in English football as he collects Gueye's pass over the top of the defence, but his touch allows Sanchez to steal possession back.
Tosun may find himself becoming quite lonely on his debut if the opening 10 minutes of this match is anything to go by. The Toffees have certainly started with defence as their main priority.
Kane turns the ball around the corner for Alli to run on to, but Holgate shows good pace and composure to deal with the danger.
Still no chances to speak of in the opening stages of this game, but Everton have just begun to see a bit more of the ball than they were in the very early minutes.
Chance for Spurs to catch Everton out of position as Alli drives forward before sliding a pass through for Kane, but there is a bit too much on it and Kane is forced wide. The striker catches it, but his cross is too heavy.
CHANCE! The first chance of the game falls to Spurs as Eriksen whips a wicked free kick into the box. Son has made the dart to the front post and helps it on its way, but the ball flies off target with Pickford a mere spectator.
CHANCE! Everton respond with a chance of their own as Tosun gets a nice touch to a long ball forward, steering it into the path of Rooney. Rooney drags his left-footed effort wide of the target, but that is more encouraging for the visitors.
Craig Pawson let Kenny get away with one earlier, and he has applied the same leniency too Dembele too here after he pulled Rooney to ground cynically.
Spurs have seen 76% of possession in the last five minutes, but they haven't been able to do much with it so far. Pickford has not had a save to make so far, with the end product just lacking for the hosts at the moment.
Sigurdsson corner is cleared out by Alli, but only as far as Gueye. The Everton midfielder connects with his first-time volley pretty well too, but it is blocked before it can cause Lloris any problems.
DISALLOWED GOAL! Everton think they have broken the deadlock, but the celebrations are immediately cut short by the offside flag! It was Rooney who got the finishing touch, diverting Tosun's header past Lloris from close range, but he had just gone too early.
© Offside
SAVES! That disallowed goal seems to have stirred Tottenham here! First Dembele slides a pass through to Kane, who takes it early with a curling effort but doesn't start it far enough outside the keeper as Pickford saves. Moments later Kane works space for himself to shoot again, but this time it is straight at the Everton keeper.
SAVE! Kane and Pickford cross paths again here as he gets a shot away on the turn, but he doesn't catch it perfectly and Pickford is down to collect it.
GOAL! Tottenham 1-0 Everton (Son Heung-min)
First blood goes to Tottenham, and it is Son on the scoresheet at Wembley yet again - his fifth home game in a row in which he has scored!
Aurier is left in acres of space down the right channel, so much so that his first touch is poor but there are still no Everton players close to him when he lets fly from inside the box. Martina should come across but instead allows Aurier to produce an unchallenged shot, which he skews across goal. Son is there to tap in, though, and the replay proves that he was onside too.
That goal will be a huge relief for Spurs as the onus is now on Everton to attack them, which could in turn leave more space at the back. Hopefully it will result in a more open game on the whole!
Everton have responded quite well to going behind here, quickly enjoying a decent spell of possession to prevent the hosts from building any serious momentum.
Here is that goal from Son, who couldn't really miss from close range after Aurier's mis-hit shot...
Everton have shown more attacking intent since going behind, although they are yet to test Hugo Lloris so far. They need to be more decisive in the final third.
Kane is the latest to avoid a possible booking for a late challenge on Holgate, although this one was merely mistimed rather than cynical. Craig Pawson is keeping his cards in his pocket so far.
Cenk Tosun has only had dribs and drabs to feed off so far, but Everton fans will be fairly encouraged by what they have seen from him so far. He looks to be a genuine target man and has been a handful at times today.
Good move from Everton as they come sweeping forward down the left flank. Tosun pulls the ball back but puts it behind Rooney, although it is quickly picked up and played back into the area. In the end McCarthy is unable to control his finish as it flies over the top, but it was better from the visitors there.
Everton have done a good job of keeping Kane quiet so far this evening. The England man has got a few shots away, but all of them have been comfortable enough saves for Pickford and there hasn't been one which you would particularly expect Kane to score.
Nice football from Spurs to get out of a tight area, with Son, Alli and Eriksen all involved. The latter plays it out to Kane, but the striker was stood in an offside position.
YELLOW CARD! Jagielka is the first name in the book for a mistimed swing at the ball, which saw him catch Alli rather than clearing the danger.
There will be one minute of added time at the end of this first half.
HALF TIME: Tottenham Hotspur 1-0 Everton
The first half comes to an end at Wembley, then, and it is Tottenham who go into the break with the slight advantage over Everton.
Spurs have seen the majority of possession and had the better chances too, with Pickford by far the busier of the two keepers. Clear-cut openings have been few and far between, though.
The only goal of the game so far came after 26 minutes, and it was a club record-equalling one for Son as he scored for the fifth Premier League home game in a row - something only Defoe has managed for Tottenham before.
It was poor defending from Everton as they left Aurier in acres of space down the right flank, and the full-back's dragged shot fell into the path of Son, who tapped home into the empty net from close range.
Son was the closest to scoring before the opening goal too, darting to the front post to glance Eriksen's wicked free kick towards the far corner only to see it fly narrowly over the crossbar.
Harry Kane has been relatively quiet on the ball, although he did have a three-minute spell during which he drew three saves from Pickford. Pickford would have expected to make each of those saves, though, and aside from that it has been slim pickings for the England striker.
Everton have had the ball in the back of the net themselves when Rooney flicked Tosun's header past Lloris from close range, but the goal was disallowed for offside and the Toffees went into the break without having had a single shot on target.
Rooney has come closest for the Toffees after latching on to Tosun's touch forward, but he could only drag his effort wide of the target with a left-footed strike.
KICKOFF: Spurs get us back underway for the second half at Wembley!
GOAL! Tottenham Hotspur 2-0 Everton (Harry Kane)
Spurs double their lead, and it is an historic goal for Harry Kane!
Son is again heavily involved as he charges forward down the left flank and goes for goal himself, although in a similar way to his own goal he drags his shot and sees it tucked home by a teammate. This time it is Kane, who sweeps his effort into the back of the net for his 97th Premier League goal - drawing level with Teddy Sheringham in Tottenham's all-time scoring list.
© Offside
SHOT! Rooney looks for an immediate response with a long-range effort, but it is always rising and doesn't trouble Lloris.
There was a question over offside for that Kane goal, but it was such a tight decision that it could have gone either way.
CHANCE! Big chance for Spurs to surely put this game to bed. Alli lays the ball off to Son, who returns the favour with a lovely slide-rule pass through to Alli. The midfielder breaks into the box, but tries to beat Pickford at his near post and can only find the side-netting.
Son has been hugely influential so far today. The likes of Kane, Eriksen and Alli get the majority of the plaudits for Tottenham going forward, but Son has developed into a key player for them too.
SAVE! Kane looks to double his personal tally as he drives forward through the middle of the field after Gueye had gifted possession to him. Spurs have teammates up in support, but Kane goes for goal himself and draws another save from Pickford.
EVERTON SUB: Everton make their first change of the evening here as former Tottenham man Aaron Lennon replaces Bolasie. Lennon gets a great reception from the Spurs fans too.
OFF THE POST! Brilliant from Son again here. Kane pings a peach of a pass across to the South Korean, who brings it down and then cuts inside onto his left foot. He delays his finish before drilling a low strike towards the bottom corner, only to see it thump off the post with Pickford beaten.
GOAL! Tottenham 3-0 Everton (Harry Kane)
The record is Harry Kane's! It isn't his cleanest strike, but he will not care one but as he surpasses Sheringham as Tottenham's all-time leading Premier League scorer now.
This time it is Dier who drills a low cross into the box and Kane's movement sees him meet the ball ahead of the Everton defenders. His finish comes off his studs and goes into the ground before bouncing over Pickford and in. Not what Kane meant, but they all count!
That is 98 Premier League goals for Kane, just two short of the century, and he is of course now just one away from yet another hat-trick. He got eight in 2017, and could open his tally for 2018 quickly.
EVERTON SUB: Tosun has lasted just over an hour on his debut as he is replaced by Dominic Calvert-Lewin.
As if the all-time record wasn't enough for Kane...
Tottenham look dangerous almost every time they come forward now. Everton have been much tighter at the back in general under Allardyce, but they could be in for a hiding if Spurs really push for it here.
Just over 20 minutes remaining in this match now, and you know that Kane will be desperate for that hat-trick. He is never content with just the one goal, and he now has six in his last three games against Everton.
Alli wins a free kick in a good crossing position which Davies swings into the middle, but Pickford comes out to punch it away.
Here is how Kane ranks amongst Tottenham's other Premier League goalscorers...
TOTTENHAM SUB: A change for the hosts here as Victor Wanyama replaces Dier.
YELLOW CARD! Rooney goes into the book for a blatant trip on Vertonghen.
CHANCES! Spurs should be four up here! Alli slides a pass through to the winger down the left channel and he once again cuts inside onto his right before going for goal. He hits it straight at Pickford, though, and the rebound from Alli is also kept out by the Everton keeper. It is a really good double save, but Spurs should have scored there.
Everton are still yet to have a single shot on target in this match, which will certainly not quieten the fans who believe that Allardyce is too negative for the club.
Important piece of defending from Holgate as he recovers to put in a last-gasp sliding challenge on Son. The Korean darted forward down the left yet again and looked to have escaped the Everton defender, but Holgate blocked the eventual shot.
GOAL! Tottenham 4-0 Everton (Christian Eriksen)
Oh this is a stunning goal. Absolutely stunning. Tottenham sweep forward and cut through Everton like a hot knife through butter, with all of their attackers involved.
Son feeds the ball in to Alli, who produces a back-heel into the path of Eriksen, who sweeps an emphatic first-time finish past the keeper. Every Tottenham attacker knew exactly where his teammate was then, and Everton simply couldn't cope.
© Offside
This has been a brilliant second-half display from Tottenham. They weren't at their very best in the opening 45, but it has been one-way traffic since the interval.
TOTTENHAM SUB: Spurs made a change in the immediate aftermath of that goal, with Moussa Sissoko replacing Dembele.
TOTTENHAM SUB: The hosts make their third and final change of the evening as Eriksen is replaced by Erik Lamela.
The crowd urge Wanyama to have a go from range when he picks the ball up, and why not? The midfielder obliges, but his effort is blocked.
There will be two minutes of added time at the end of this match.
FULL TIME: Tottenham Hotspur 4-0 Everton
What a night for Tottenham - a perfect win which takes them level on points and goal difference with fourth-placed Liverpool. Son and Kane both broke record in the rout, but it was Eriksen who provided the pick of the goals by finishing off a brilliant team move for the fourth nine minutes from time.
It is a deserved win for Spurs too following a very impressive second-half showing, condemning Everton to a fourth consecutive defeat across all competitions.
Right, that is all we have time for this evening!
Thank you very much for joining Sports Mole for today's late Premier League kickoff as Tottenham thrash Everton on an historic day for Harry Kane, whose brace sees him surpass Teddy Sheringham as the club's all-time leading scorer in the Premier League. I will leave you with our match report, and be sure to stick around for reaction too.
From me, though, it is goodbye for now!
