- Tottenham destroy Everton on second weekend of Premier League season
- A brace from Son Heung-min plus goals from Yves Bissouma and Cristian Romero earned win
- Toffees set for another relegation dogfight unless drastic changes are made
FROM TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR STADIUM - Tottenham put in one of their best performances under Ange Postecoglou to earn a 4-0 win against Everton on Saturday.
Spurs were excellent from start to finish in north London and chalked up their first win of the Premier League season.
The Toffees, however, were masterfully dire and suffered their second hammering in as many games to open the new campaign.
How the game unfolded
The hosts should have been ahead inside two minutes. Everton cleared a low corner but Son Heung-min retrieved the loose clearance and played in Cristian Romero, whose half-volley was saved at point-blank range by Jordan Pickford.
Another corner moments later saw Spurs create an opening, with Son's deflected strike from 20 yards needing a strong hand from Pickford to push aside.
Pickford came up with a third fine save in the opening exchanges when he rushed out to deny James Maddison, who had raced onto Romero's pass over the sleeping backline.
Tottenham were rewarded with the first goal of the afternoon on 15 minutes. Dejan Kulusevski wriggled his way past three trailing Everton bodies in and around the penalty area before teeing up Yves Bissouma, whose strike thundered in off the underside of the crossbar, scoring for the first time in Spurs colours.
Everton sought to find an immediate equaliser and went close when Dwight McNeil's cross flew all the way to the back post for Jack Harrison, but his off-balance volley skewed off target.
Midway through the first half, Tottenham had their second and Pickford lost the credit he had banked. The Everton goalkeeper dawdled on the ball and was robbed by Son, who was able to simply tap into an empty net.
Tottenham had to survive a flurry of late corners and free-kicks to get to half-time with their two-goal lead in tact, with Everton causing real problems from set pieces.
After the break, Maddison went close again after being found by Romero, though this time his scuffed shot was a little easier for Pickford to deal with.
A loose pass from debutant Wilson Odobert allowed new Everton signing Jesper Lindstrom to have a pop at goal, with Guglielmo Vicario throwing up his long arm to thwart him.
With 20 minutes remaining, Spurs added a third. The combination of Romero and Maddison was threatening Everton all afternoon, and it turned out to be the midfielder assisting the defender this time, as the Argentine headed in from a deliciously whipped corner.
Tottenham's fourth was quick to follow. Micky van de Ven won the ball back on the edge of his own box and proceeded to carry it around 80 yards to the other penalty area. From there, he shifted possession to Son, who nutmegged Pickford to round off the scoring.
Tottenham Hotspur player ratings (4-3-3)
GK: Guglielmo Vicario - 6/10 - Survived an aerial bombardment from Everton after falling foul to one last season.
RB: Pedro Porro - 5/10 - Everton made sure to attack the space that Porro vacated whenever roaming forward. Fortunately for the Spaniard, the Toffees weren't at the races.
CB: Cristian Romero - 8/10 - Marked his 100th Tottenham appearance with a goal from a Maddison corner. Endured a strange afternoon in possession, with a couple of loose passes at the back followed by some lovely switches of play and pings over the top.
CB: Micky van de Ven - 8/10 - Somehow survived a knee injury that made you wince and completed the full game, breaking up Everton attacks with his trademark speed before using that advantage to come up with an assist for Son.
LB: Destiny Udogie - 6/10 - Far more confident on the ball than in Monday's draw at Leicester. Taken off in the second half with a knock.
DM: Yves Bissouma - 8/10 - Removed from selection for the opening day after a nitrous oxide debacle, but responded brilliantly with an all-round midfield performance. His first Tottenham goal was a corker.
CM: Dejan Kulusevski - 8/10 - Tottenham's best player that wasn't on the scoresheet. Shone in a deeper midfield role, taking the ball and carrying it into the final third with his mix of strength and grace.
CM: James Maddison - 8/10 - Finding his rhythm again after a tough 2024 to this point. At the heart of Tottenham's attacks and was deserving of his assist for Romero.
RW: Brennan Johnson - 5/10 - Skirted around the fringes of the contest and often ran into the dead end propped up by Mykolenko.
CF: Son Heung-min - 9/10 - Whether central or out wide, Son is still scoring all sorts of goals. Mohamed Salah is the only other Premier League player to have contributed to over 100 goals since the 2020/21 season.
LW: Wilson Odobert - 7/10 - A fine debut for Tottenham's new winger. Showed a real determination to take his man on regardless of where he popped up on the pitch.
Substitutes
SUB: Richarlison (67' for Odobert) - 6/10
SUB: Pape Matar Sarr (67' for Kulusevski) - 6/10
SUB: Archie Gray (73' for Bissouma) - 6/10
SUB: Djed Spence (73' for Udogie) - 6/10
SUB: Lucas Bergvall (79' for Maddison) - 6/10
Subs not used: Fraser Forster (GK), Ben Davies, Radu Dragusin, Timo Werner
Manager
Ange Postecoglou - 8/10 - The only thing that will stop Tottenham from succeeding under the Australian is their aversion to defensive duties. Today reaffirmed they can go toe-to-toe with anyone when things are going their way.
Everton player ratings (4-4-1-1)
GK: Jordan Pickford - 3/10 - Kept Everton afloat early on with a string of saves but his error was the catalyst for Tottenham's large margin of victory.
RB: Roman Dixon - 4/10 - It really was a baptism of fire for the 19-year-old debutant. Spurs targeted him immediately from kick-off and he was given a bit of a runaround by Odobert, particularly in the first half.
CB: James Tarkowski - 5/10 - Got his head on absolutely everything until he was out-jumped by Romero for the goal which killed the game.
CB: Michael Keane - 4/10 - Spun too-and-fro by Tottenham's rotating cast of attackers. Surely it's only a matter of time before Jake O'Brien gets a chance.
LB: Vitaliy Mykolenko - 6/10 - Probably the only Everton player who can say they did their job well, stifling the pacy Johnson.
RM: Jack Harrison - 5/10 - Should have done better with a half-decent opening just after Spurs took the lead, and that chance goes down as the game's sliding-doors moment.
CM: Tim Iroegbunam - 4/10 - Overrun by the busy midfield and often needed to make cynical fouls just to keep up.
CM: Idrissa Gueye - 4/10 - Similarly failed to cope with Tottenham's press and capability of slicing through Everton like a knife through butter.
LM: Dwight McNeil - 4/10 - Didn't ask nearly enough questions of the hosts considering how much space he was given to drive into.
AM: Abdoulaye Doucoure - 5/10 - Floated between the lines and all over the place trying to link midfield to attack. Didn't quite fulfil that task.
CF: Dominic Calvert-Lewin - 5/10 - Worked hard for the cause but his efforts were ultimately futile.
Substitutes
SUB: Iliman Ndiaye (57' for Doucoure) - 5/10
SUB: Jesper Lindstrom (57' for Harrison) - 5/10
SUB: Beto (72' for Calvert-Lewin) - 5/10
SUB: Harrison Armstrong (90' for Gueye) - N/A
Subs not used: Joao Virginia (GK), Mason Holgate, Jake O'Brien, Jenson Metcalfe, Neal Maupay
Manager
Sean Dyche - 4/10 - Everton are in trouble if they are so feeble, especially in open play.
