Spurs fans have reason to be excited this weekend as Antonio Conte’s Premier League reign in the dugout begins at Goodison Park against Rafa Benitez’ Everton side. The sacking of Nuno Espirito Santo and subsequent hiring of the Italian has seen optimism abound at Tottenham Hotspur stadium.
They were given a taste of what to expect from Conte in the wild 3-2 victory over Vitesse in the UEFA Conference League and the first thirty minutes of that performance would have had even the most pessimistic Spurs fan salivating. Tottenham has had an impressive record against Everton in recent years and they will be hoping that will continue in this matchup.
Everton v Tottenham FYIs:
Kick-off time: 2 PM GMT, 7 November Sunday
Tottenham Team News: go here
Premier League Preview Pod: go here
Form Guide (All Competitions): Everton (WDWLL) Tottenham (LLWLW)
Let’s see if we can take a stab at how Antonio Conte might line up his first Premier League XI in the Spurs dugout.
Between the posts will be Frenchman Hugo Lloris. I wrongly thought he would be rested for the Conference League match mid-week, but I am fairly certain I am not wrong this time around. Pierluigi Gollini is still some ways away from being a Premier League number one.
In the three-man defense, I think we will see Eric Dier in the middle much as we did in the Vitesse game. I think Japhet Tanganga will line up to his right and Argentine Christian Romero will switch over to the left-hand side.
It’s no secret that Conte’s sides contain ultra attacking wing-backs and we saw evidence of that in mid-week competition. I still think Matt Doherty will be a great fit so I am going for him to line up on the right with Sergio Reguilon on the opposite flank at left wing-back.
The midfield two will likely be Oliver Skipp and Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg. They are the perfect combination to play in this system and the fact that neither played the full 90 minutes against Vitesse suggests to me that Conte feels the same way.
The forward line- don’t expect any surprises. All three of Harry Kane, Heung Min-Son, and Lucas Moura scored in that wild opening thirty minutes against Vitesse and I don’t see any reason to change.
Spurs fans will be hoping Antonio Conte can work his magic on Harry Kane and get him back to his best.
This has the potential to be one of the games of the weekend. You don’t want to miss this one. For what it’s worth I am going for a Spurs victory as they herald a new era under the Italian mastermind.