Everton’s unbeaten start to life at the Hill Dickinson Stadium was ended in controversial fashion as Spurs defender Micky van de Ven’s double and Pape Matar Sarr’s late third earned the visitors a 3-0 win – but only after the hosts saw an equaliser chalked off by VAR for a contentious offside call.
Everton had not lost any of their first five matches at their new home but were largely undone before half-time by a pair of goals from corners – the first they have conceded from set pieces all season.
Van de Ven continued his superb scoring form with his fourth and fifth goals of the campaign but could not have wished for an easier pair of finishes. He first glanced Rodrigo Bentancur’s header back across goal beyond Jordan Pickford, before being left totally unmarked to do likewise from Pedro Porro’s excellent delivery.
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Van de Ven put Spurs two up
Sandwiched in between those goals was what appeared to be a legitimate equaliser from Jake O’Brien, whose powerful near-post header from another corner left Guglielmo Vicario with little chance.
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Jake O’Brien’s goal was overturned following a VAR check, which ruled Iliman Ndiaye is adjusted to have been interfering with Spurs stopper Guglielmo Vicario and was in an offside position
But Everton’s joy was short-lived when the prospect of a VAR review became clear, and doubly so when Iliman Ndiaye was penalised for impeding Vicario while in an offside position. How much he affected the goalkeeper’s chance of saving O’Brien’s header was questionable, but not enough for David Moyes to argue.
“I’ve seen it and I think it was the right decision,” he told Sky Sports. “It wasn’t a goal. It’s hard to take but in the end it’s the right decision.
“The position he (Ndiaye) took up with the goalkeeper, if it had happened to me I’d be complaining it was an offside goal.”
A second-half rally was not enough to keep the Toffees’ invincible start to life at Bramley-Moor Dock intact, with Beto’s acrobatic bicycle kick brilliantly saved by Vicario, and Ndiaye’s deflected effort pulling another strong stop from the Italian.
Instead, Everton’s fans were left streaming out of their new home before full-time for the first time once Sarr had nodded another header beyond Pickford from Richarlison’s nod across goal.
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Ismaïla Sarr headed in Tottenham Hotspur’s third goal to seal victory
Amid a weekend of surprise results, three points on Merseyside was enough to send Tottenham into third after a previously shaky week, five points off leaders and north London rivals Arsenal.
Moyes: No need to overreact
Everton head coach David Moyes to Sky Sports:
“We don’t need to react in any big fashion. We played a good Tottenham team. They’re in the Champions League.
“We’ve moved from the stadium, the position we were in needed to improve. First defeat at the stadium since we moved here.”
Frank wanted to improve set-pieces
Tottenham head coach Thomas Frank to Sky Sports:
“I said from the beginning when we came in that I wanted to improve a lot and one of them was being defensively strong and also set-pieces needed to be better. Two very good goals but also the desire and mentality to defend the box.
“We tried to build something and add layers to the team all the time. The whole team was good but Joao Palhinha and Bentancur were fantastic. All the subs made a difference. This is a long season and we are going to need everyone.”
Analysis: Spurs show nouse to end Everton run
Sky Sports’ Ron Walker at the Hill Dickinson Stadium:
In driving rain and wind on the banks of the Mersey, Tottenham’s performance was little more aesthetic than the day around them, but that was the intent all along from Thomas Frank’s side.
They took the lead without playing particularly well but showed the threat they will always carry from set-pieces under this head coach, before slowing the game down as much as possible at every restart to disrupt Everton’s rhythm – and it worked.
Despite starting brightly this was Jack Grealish’s least effective game in a Toffees shirt, and as he faded only Iliman Ndiaye’s flashes of brilliance and Beto’s second-half acrobatics really threatened any sort of comeback.
Even if David Moyes pointed to Jake O’Brien’s disallowed goal but the decision to penalise Ndiaye was 50-50, and without that slice of luck his side did not to enough across 90 minutes to earn anything.
Spurs continue to outperform their expected goals tally but they make their own luck – this isn’t a pretty way of winning, and Frank is a manager who will want to bring a more expansive style in time, but for now it is effective enough to have last-season’s fourth-bottom finishers up to third in the Premier League table.
Pickford could have a problem, says Carra
Sky Sports’ Jamie Carragher:
“When I talk about certain teams and players not being suited to this style shift in the Premier League, Everton have got Jordan Pickford – England’s No 1 and rightly so. But I think his size and presence of him isn’t setup to deal with situations like the Van de Ven goal.
“It wasn’t a good look for the England goalkeeper. He’s a fantastic goalkeeper but if people keep putting balls on his head, he might have a problem.”
