Tottenham fans were left unimpressed by Mateus Fernandes’ display in attacking midfield during the clash against Everton.
Tottenham Hotspur boss Roberto De Zerbi made several changes to the Tottenham XI that took to the pitch against Everton.
Dominic Solanke was brought into the side for his first start of the season, while Mateus Fernandes came in as an attacking midfielder in place of Conor Gallagher, who featured there last weekend against Nottingham Forest.
In defence, Andy Robertson and Archie Gray started at left and right-back respectively in place of the injured Destiny Udogie and Pedro Porro.
Tottenham fans react to Mateus Fernandes performance against Everton
The changes made by the Spurs boss were enough for Tottenham to secure a 0-0 draw against Everton at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, but did little to improve the Lilywhites’ struggles in front of goal.
Spurs have now played six hours of football without scoring in the Premier League this season, a run that has set an unwanted record.
Following the game against Everton, Tottenham fans have given their take on the performance of Mateus Fernandes, who came in to offer some creativity.
The Tottenham fans said when asked their thoughts on Fernandes’ display:
- “Not wonderful. Need Maddison or Xavi back for the 10. Think Fernandes is great played in his position. Huge potential and think him and Tonali could make a great partnership but at the moment we have no creativity in midfield/10.”
- “Really bad but not a number 10 and no idea why we are playing him as a number 10.”
- “Poor decision-making today. But has plenty of talent.”
- “Played in the wrong position but they all need to be coached better. Watch Tottenham training sessions, loads of finishing drills, but do not do it in matches.”
- “He was terrible unfortunately. Only one game, let us go again on Tues.”
- “He is not a 10. Stop using him there.”
- “Not great but he is out of position.”
- “Playing out of position, he is at his best if he plays the number 8 role. #COYS”
- “If he can just shoot the ball rather than keep passing and touching.”
Fernandes’ numbers underline his struggles in the final third
The underlying numbers from Fernandes’ performance against Everton do show that the midfielder struggled to create anything for Spurs in the final third.
Fernandes got 63 minutes of football against the Toffees and did not create a single chance for Tottenham while he was on the pitch.
He did have a few half chances in the game where he should have taken a shot, but the midfielder was hesitant to let fly.
The stats do show that Tottenham need a lot more from Fernandes if he is to be deployed in attacking midfield.
| Statistic | Number |
|---|---|
| Minutes played | 63 |
| Accurate passes | 49/50 (98%) |
| Chances created | 0 |
| Shots on target | 1 |
| Shots off target | 1 |
| Blocked shots | 1 |
| Shot accuracy | 1/2 (50%) |
| Touches in opposition box | 5 |
| Successful dribbles | 0/1 (0%) |
| Passes into final third | 6 |
| Line-breaking passes | 7 |