Everton’s Predicted Starting XI vs. Tottenham Hotspur: Andre Gomes on bench, Kenny starts
By Zac Jones
New signings Allan and Doucoure start but James expected to come off from the bench.
Midfielders
Right Wing: Theo Walcott
Tottenham Hotspur’s attacking full backs and pacey wingers will likely pay a key factor in Sunday’s game and this is something Carlo Ancelotti will have to think about.
Although these players will offer an attacking threat for Tottenham, they will also leave gaps in the wide areas and Everton could use Walcott out wide to exploit these areas when they attempt to hit Tottenham Hotspur on the counter.
Centre Midfielders: Allan & Abdoulaye Doucoure
Everton fans will have come accustomed to seeing Jean-Phillipe Gbamin and Fabian Delph’s names on the injury list and the pair find themselves there again for this season’s opening fixture.
Even though Andre Gomes is deemed fit there are still question marks also surrounding Andre Gomes’ 100% fitness after being sent home early from the Portugal squad, Ancelotti may well throw two of his new signings straight into the starting eleven. Allan and Doucoure have been brought in to add some much needed energy and physical presence to the centre of Everton’s midfield and Carlo will not want to waste any time in fixing the Toffees’ most glaring issue from last season.
Left Wing: Anthony Gordon
As mentioned previously, Tottenham Hotspur wide areas could cause some problems for the Blues this Sunday. Towards the end of last season, Carlo Ancelotti would often employ two defensive wingers to combat this area, most notably in the 0-0 draw against Liverpool with Alex Iwobi and Anthony Gordon out wide and rarely venturing forward from these positions.
Gordon was an exciting addition to the side in the final games of last season and has shown that he can perform a more disciplined role as well as offering a threat going forward. He may well be picked this Sunday to combat the threat of Spurs’ new signing Matt Doherty, and attempt to become a trusted member of Ancelotti’s squad for the upcoming campaign.