After a completely shocking performance in the defeat to Wigan last Monday, I was hoping against hope that we would possibly escape with a point from this year’s visit to White Hart Lane. I was quite surprised then, when the match kicked off and we actually seemed to be holding our own. Plenty of talk before the game had been about a few injuries picked up, with Yakubu supposedly our only fit striking option, so it was no real surprise that we saw Moyes implement what seems to be his favoured formation of 4-5-1.
What wasn’t in the plan of course, was Yakubu rupturing his achilles less than halfway through the first 45 and a semi-injured Saha replacing him. At least Steven Pienaar was back in action after injury and that seemed to add a balance and creativity to our midfield that we haven’t seen all season. This was a match in which no Everton player had a shocker – again, possibly for the first time this term, and players from whom we have come to expect little, like Arteta, started to shine again at last. Mikel was in the centre of midfield and pretty much everything went through him and Fellaini. The lanky Belgian making most of the runs and passes forward, with Osman and Pienaar darting in, out and around to actually play some decent passing football. Saha was pretty isolated and for all of Everton’s posession, there weren’t exactly a plethora of chances carved out in the first half, apart from a header that Saha really should have put away and a couple of decent saves by the accident waiting to happen that is Gomez from Fellaini.
Although I wouldn’t have called it a dull match, the Everton highlight thus far had to be PIenaar picking up Ossie’s spare shirt by mistake at half time and sheepishly having to delay the second half slightly whilst he ran back to the dressing room for his own name and number. It wasn’t until Everton won a free kick and took it whilst Spurs were still napping that the breakthrough came. Pienaar latching onto the pass of a quick-thinking Arteta and the decent shot deflecting off the defender into the back of the net. Cue great celebrations, Pienaar’s t-shirt reminding us that God is a blue after all and receiving a booking for the privilege.
Although we had scored, the job was far from done as there were still 40 minutes of defending to do (or 46 as it turned out) before the points were ours. This was where a certain Mr Jagielka came into his own. The rest of the back 4 were fine too (although I’m still slightly worried about Lescott – but that is for another day) but Jags was an absolute rock. Every ball in, he managed to get his head there first, he blocked and threw himself everywhere to keep Spurs at bay, letting very little past at all. When the ball did rarely escape Jags then Howard was there with confidence and commitment, looking like the uncertainty of commanding the box days are well behind him. A great defensive display, plus some decent nuisance making at the other end by Big Vic on for Saha, meant that despite Spurs throwing the kitchen sink forward, it never really looked like they would equalise.
We did it. The lads held on and for the third season in a row we beat Spurs at their own stomping ground for a much needed (and deserved) 3 points, but with Saha being stretchered off with a hamstring problem and news of Yak being out for the season, the mood wasn’t perhaps as jubilant as it could have been. Assuming Saha is out for a month at least, with Vaughan also sidelined and going to the US for surgery this week, Yak’s serious injury could have big implications for us. Although Victor Anichebe has looked a much improved player since his silver medal winning summer expedition to the Olympics with Nigeria, being the only out and out senior striker available until next year is quite a pressure for him to carry.
With zero funds as usual available for the January window, either we need Vic to turn into Didier Drogba overnight, or we need to buy or get on loan a good striking option just to keep fielding a striker or two every game. It has often been said that Moyes’ Everton can start to really motor when their backs are against the wall and the chips are down (and half a dozen other cliches) but sadly that isn’t always how we deal with this sort of thing – with some difficult games coming up against tricky opposition in the next month or two, I just hope that this is one of those times when we do.
Want to write for us? Click here to find out more
the Yakubu injury leaves me gutted… a big Yak fan… just wrote an exclusive at never captain nicky butt with an old story about the Yak…
cheers.