Tottenham Hotspur vs Everton: Spurs Seek First League Win
Tottenham Hotspur walk out at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Saturday still waiting for a first Premier League win of the season. The table already makes uncomfortable reading. Three games played, one point, 18th place.
Roberto De Zerbi’s side are treading a thin line between a slow start and a full-blown crisis. Fail to score again, and they tumble into unwanted club history: four consecutive league games without a goal for the first time ever.
The backdrop is awkward. Spurs’ only win – and only clean sheet – in their last 12 Premier League home matches came against these very opponents. That result is doing a lot of heavy lifting in the confidence department.
Spurs team news: Maddison a doubt, wide options stretched
James Maddison is the headline concern. He trained before last weekend’s trip to Forest but never made the squad, still nursing the shoulder injury picked up in the opening-day defeat to Brentford. He remains a serious doubt.
The flanks are a problem zone. Dejan Kulusevski, Wilson Odobert and Xavi Simons are all still working their way back from knee injuries, leaving De Zerbi short of natural width and short of variety.
There was a brief ray of light when Mykhaylo Mudryk finally returned, making his first competitive appearance in over 600 days against Forest. That optimism evaporated quickly. The winger has since suffered a new ankle injury and is now ruled out for six to eight weeks, another sharp blow to Spurs’ attacking plans.
With so many creative options missing, De Zerbi is expected to stick with Savio and Mathys Tel in the wide attacking roles. Both will be asked to carry a heavy load in stretching Everton and giving Dominic Solanke some service.
In the middle, Mohammed Kudus is still being eased back after a long lay-off. His minutes are growing, his influence needs to follow.
Predicted Tottenham Hotspur XI
De Zerbi is likely to keep faith with his 4-2-3-1 shape:
Tottenham Hotspur possible starting XI (4-2-3-1):
Kinsky; Porro, Van Hecke, Van de Ven, Robertson; Tonali, Bentancur; Savio, Fernandes, Tel; Solanke.
The spine looks strong enough. The question is whether the pieces around it can finally click in the final third.
Key details: kick-off time and TV coverage
The Premier League fixture kicks off at 17:30 on Saturday, 12 September 2026, at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
In the UK, the match will be shown live on Sky Sports Main Event.
Spurs stand at a crossroads early in the campaign: does this become the afternoon they shake off a stuttering start, or the day their season’s anxiety truly begins?
