Paul Merson explains his prediction for Tottenham v Everton
Paul Merson looks ahead to Tottenham's home clash against Everton in the Premier League on Saturday
Arsenal legend Paul Merson (Photo: Sky Sports)
Paul Merson is backing Tottenham Hotspur to claim a narrow 2-1 victory over Everton in north London in Saturday evening’s Premier League clash.
Spurs head into the home game knowing that a victory would move them level on points with second-placed Manchester City, who travel to Liverpool FC on Sunday.
Tottenham bounced back from their recent north London derby defeat by Arsenal with a 1-0 win away to Brighton last weekend, followed by a 3-2 home victory over Eintracht Frankfurt in the Champions League on Wednesday night.
Everton, meanwhile, are aiming to bounce back from their 2-1 loss to Manchester United last weekend and return to winning ways in the top flight. The Toffees start the weekend in 12th place in the table, having won just two of their opening nine games.
Former Arsenal star Merson feels that Spurs are now starting to “click” under manager Antonio Conte and feels that they are on course to claim a comfortable win at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Saturday evening.
Writing in his column for Sportskeeda, Merson said: “Tottenham are starting to click under Antonio Conte. They did well to stay where they are without Son Heung-Min. Now that he’s started to play regularly, I think they’ll do well.
“They haven’t played too well so far and they’re third in the Premier League – there’s nothing too wrong with that.
Antonio Conte (Photo: Marco Canoniero / depositphotos.com)
“Teams like Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur need to keep their focus on the top four. Two big teams are going to miss out this season, and you don’t want to be one of them. They need to keep on ticking away and reassess after the World Cup. Tottenham have stepped up this month and should be able to win this Premier League game.”
Meanwhile, former Chelsea FC star Chris Sutton is also predicting a win for Spurs in front of their home fans. Sutton is tipping Tottenham to claim a 3-1 home victory and put the pressure back on Manchester City and Arsenal at the top of the table.
“Everton were a bit underwhelming against Manchester United at the weekend, especially after taking an early lead,” Sutton wrote in his own column for BBC Sport.
“The Toffees defence has improved a lot since the last time they came to Spurs – they lost 5-0 in March – but United showed you can still get at them.
“I think Everton boss Frank Lampard will be quite pragmatic here, but stopping Spurs won’t be easy. Harry Kane is up and running and Son Heung-min is still in my fantasy team and is going to come good soon.
“So, Tottenham will find a way though. How comfortable this is for them just depends on when they score their first goal.”
Tottenham have been in great form at home heading into this game. They have now won seven successive Premier League home games, marking their best run since a 14-match streak in 2016 and 2017.
Everton’s 1-0 at Spurs on the opening day of last season was their only victory away to the north London club since 2008.