Everton: 3 Tottenham Hotspur players beside Harry Kane that could hurt Toffees

Harry Kane loves to play and score against Everton, however, here are 3 Tottenham players who could damage Everton in the season opener.

The last time Everton played against Tottenham Hotspur, the North Londoners walked away with three points in a dull match. This time around, there are a lot of expectations from the Toffees to finally end a 15 match winless streak against Spurs and snatch 3 points away from home.

New signings Allan, Abdoulaye Doucoure and James Rodriguez will be on display and the Evertonians will be hoping each of the new signings can have a positive impact. However, playing against Jose Mourinho’s Tottenham Hotspur won’t be an easy task and some of the players will be a real threat to the Merseysiders.

Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg (Defensive Midfielder)

The Danish midfielder was also on the Toffees’ summer shopping list, however, he preferred to move to North London. It’s likely he will make his debut to face a vastly different Everton midfield than last season.

Jose Mourinho will deploy the 25-year-old international as a holding midfielder in front of the Spurs’ back four. It’s a role Hojbjerg is well suited for. According to Whoscored, he’s averaged more than two tackles a match while at Southampton.

Against a new-look Everton midfield, which will contain more creativity and bite last season, a player like Hojbjerg will be a key if Spurs want to win. Hojbjerg also excels in a statistic that seldom grabs headlines, ball recoveries. Winning possession after a loose ball or a thrown for example is a ball recovery.

According to the official website of the  Premier League, Hojbjerg had 327 recoveries in 33 games, an average of nearly 10 a match, which lead the EPL. That’s a skill that could prevent Everton’s new and improved midfield becoming dominant and imposing themselves on the match.