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Tottenham v. Everton: 5 reasons to back Spurs to overcome the Toffees

By Rucker Haringey

LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND - JANUARY 03: Harry Kane of Tottenham Hotspur and Tom Cleverley of Everton during the Barclays Premier League match between Everton and Tottenham Hotspur at Goodison Park on January 3, 2016 in Liverpool, England. (Photo by Matthew Ashton - AMA/Getty Images)
LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND - JANUARY 03: Harry Kane of Tottenham Hotspur and Tom Cleverley of Everton during the Barclays Premier League match between Everton and Tottenham Hotspur at Goodison Park on January 3, 2016 in Liverpool, England. (Photo by Matthew Ashton - AMA/Getty Images) /
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LONDON, ENGLAND – FEBRUARY 26: Harry Kane of Tottenham Hotspur celebrates as he scores his teams third goal and completes his hattrick with teammates Kyle Walker and Jan Vertonghen during the Premier League match between Tottenham Hotspur and Stoke City at White Hart Lane on February 26, 2017 in London, England. (Photo by Michael Regan/Getty Images)
LONDON, ENGLAND – FEBRUARY 26: Harry Kane of Tottenham Hotspur celebrates as he scores his teams third goal and completes his hattrick with teammates Kyle Walker and Jan Vertonghen during the Premier League match between Tottenham Hotspur and Stoke City at White Hart Lane on February 26, 2017 in London, England. (Photo by Michael Regan/Getty Images) /

5. Kyle Walker will overwhelm Leighton Baines

Kyle Walker and Leighton Baines are two of the best fullbacks that England has to offer at the current point in time. Unfortunately for Everton, this isn’t a good match-up for their talented left back.

If Mauricio Pochettino, as expected, lines his club up in a 3-4-3 formation it means that Walker and Baines will see quite a bit of one another. The Everton man has more skill than his Spurs counterpart, but Walker has a decided edge in terms of athleticism.

Walker’s pace and size give him the potential to dominate the matchup. I believe Baines will have to do something with a set piece or a cross if he wants to draw even against Walker. If he doesn’t use his skill in the final third, he’s going to find himself chasing behind the Tottenham man for long stretches of the match.

Walker’s game plan will simply be to use his athleticism to suffocate Baines. That means he won’t give him time on the ball, or even the opportunity to storm forward for the Toffees. Count on Baines spending entirely too much time in his own final third to defeat Tottenham.

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