As Everton and Tottenham Hotspur held each other to a 1-1 draw on Sunday, the halfway line at Goodison Park acted as a line of symmetry; separating two sides attempting to escape the overbearing shadows of their more prestigious neighbours by investing in prodigious talent, entertaining styles of football and two of the Premier League’s most up-and-coming managers in Roberto Martinez and Mauricio Pochettino.
Indeed, there are eerie similarities between the Toffees and the Lilywhites, so perhaps it’s no surprise they came to a stalemate after 90 minutes of high-octane, progressive and viewer-friendly football. Yet, whilst a point on the road was a fitting and valuable reward for a Spurs outfit now just a stone’s throw away from the Premier League’s summit, the result felt somewhat more underwhelming for the home side, sabotaging their planned escape from the bottom half of the table.
Everton fans might argue that’s an unnecessarily pessimistic assessment. After all, Spurs have lost just twice in the Premier League this season – the joint-lowest amount along with Leicester City – and their goals against column is the healthiest in the division.
They’re second in the Premier League’s form guide on the road, with three wins and three draws from their last six, and third in the season’s away table overall. To sum up, they’re not particularly easy customers, especially away from White Hart Lane.
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Yet, the result on Sunday clusters with many of Everton’s upon facing top half opposition this season.
They’ve claimed just six points of a possible 33 from those above them in the table, held to draws by the likes of Crystal Palace, Liverpool and Watford and beaten by the likes of Stoke City, Arsenal and Manchester United.
In a season where virtually every team is siphoning defeats and claiming shock wins against the Premier League’s flagship clubs, it’s incredibly worrying that Martinez’s side haven’t taken all three points against any of the current top ten.
Whilst their quality of football and quality of personnel is certainly up there with the Lilywhites’ – or arguably superior in some instances – the results are certainly not. Although there are countless similarities between the two clubs at the moment, the seven positions and nine points separating them in the Premier League table highlights the damning difference – the efficiency in which Spurs get good results whilst still employing a stylish brand of football.
The biggest gulf is defensively; Everton have conceded almost double the amount of times as Sunday’s opponents in the same amount of fixtures this season, keeping five clean sheets opposed to Tottenham’s seven. Most disturbingly, they’ve conceded 20 times at Goodison Park – the worst home defensive record throughout the top flight.
Captain Phil Jagielka is a notable absentee. He’s been a bedrock at the heart of defence throughout his near-decade on Merseyside and as Everton’s oldest and most experienced defender by quite some distance, is the orchestrating leader of their backline. For all of John Stones’ natural talent, he’s still got much to learn in that regard, whilst summer signing Ramiro Funes Mori probably isn’t fully acclimatised to the Premier League just yet. Likewise, Leighton Baines, another Toffees stalwart, has missed the majority of the campaign through injury.
But Spurs’ impressive defensive record is not simply the effect of available personnel. Despite the distinct overlap between Martinez and Pochettino’s philosophies in attacking terms, it’s the values at their cores which separate the two sides. The Spaniard insists upon attractive play, possession-based football and technical flair, but before his Spurs counterpart gets his sides to that point, he ensures industriousness, energy and passion is in place first.
No doubt, Everton have their fair share of runners – James McCarthy, Seamus Coleman, Tom Cleverley and Steven Naismith are tireless workers. But whilst all of Tottenham’s players would run through a brick wall for Pochettino and have done countless times already throughout his 18 month tenure, I’m not sure the same can be said for the likes of Ross Barkley, Romelu Lukaku and Gerard Deulofeu in regards to Martinez.
To an extent, that’s about individual personalities, but Pochettino has overcome them at Spurs to create an undying work ethic and impenetrable team spirit. His players are equally motivated as they are disciplined, and it shows every week.
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I’m not suggesting Pochettino is necessarily the better manager or superior developer of young talent. Pretty much his entire Southampton cohort, the likes of Adam Lallana, Rickie Lambert, Dejan Lovren and Calum Chambers, have failed to live up to expectations at bigger clubs. Perhaps Pochettino’s greatest gift is getting young players to play the game in his way, rather than actually improving them as footballers. Only time will tell.
But Everton are at a crossroads under Martinez. On the one hand, certain talents are unquestionably flourishing; major clubs from the Premier League and yonder can’t wait to take John Stones, Ross Barkley and Romelu Lukaku off their hands; but on the other, the Toffees are underachieving in terms of results. Pochettino is proving that can’t simply be down to their novice personnel; Spurs actually have the youngest squad age in the league and understudy ‘keeper Michel Vorm is their only player over 30.
It suggests Everton are becoming a nursery club – a feeder team for Europe’s elite – and with so many of the Premier League’s rank-and-file performing vastly beyond expectations this season, they’re in real danger of being left behind.
Should the status quo remain the same, the two clubs are set for completely polarised summers. With a top four finish, the likes of Dele Alli, Harry Kane and Christian Eriksen will be more than happy to continue their development under Pochettino. Should Everton finish in the bottom half, on the other hand, or for that matter outside of the bottom six, it seems inevitable their prized assets will be poached by Europe’s top clubs.
Whether it requires a change in tact, dropping young players to prove a point or simply a more hardline approach to man management, Martinez can’t allow Everton to continue being the Premier League’s soft touch.
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