Paul Merson has delivered his verdict on Tottenham Hotspur’s upcoming clash with Everton and expects the frustration of his old rivals to continue.
Tottenham Hotspur have already had plenty of ups and downs this season, starting from very early on. Impressive victories over Burnley and Manchester City were followed by a home defeat to Bournemouth and this level of inconsistency has been prevalent ever since.
There has not been much to cheer about since the international break, with Spurs suffering a defeat against Aston Villa last weekend, before partaking in a goalless draw against Monaco.
Tottenham’s next match is against Everton, a team who have also struggled to remain consistent. This is summarised perfectly by the results from their three most recent fixtures – a draw, a win and a loss.
Paul Merson predicts an entertaining draw between Everton and Tottenham
Paul Merson has made his weekly Premier League predictions and he has not been impressed by Spurs in recent weeks.
The former Arsenal forward has highlighted how Tottenham have failed to defeat teams they should have been beating and he has even described them as ‘lucky’.
He told Sportskeeda: “Tottenham still have that ‘Spursy’ mentality in them, don’t they? They got a late draw against struggling Wolves, were lucky again in the draw vs Bodo/Glimt, won at Leeds but then got the lead versus Aston Villa before losing that game last weekend!
“Even in the Champions League game against Monaco on Wednesday night, they were held to a draw and conceded many chances.”
However, Merson also has doubts over Everton and he has taken aim at the player leading their attacking line.
“Everton started well but have hit a blip now,” Merson continued. “They need a result and they need it quick.
“Jack Grealish returning to the team will make a difference, and he will cause Spurs problems. But the problem for Everton is that they don’t have a centre-forward! No disrespect to Beto, but he’s not good enough to win games for Everton.
“Tottenham perform better when the spotlight is not on them. But it will be the opposite here because they need to get back to winning ways. I think this will be an entertaining draw.”
Merson’s Prediction: Everton 2-2 Tottenham Hotspur
Merson’s Spurs prediction does not align with his thoughts
Frustratingly, Merson has continued with the tired ‘Spursy’ rhetoric, something he has mentioned multiple times already this season. However, what he has actually described is a team struggling for form under their new manager who is still finding his way at the club.
He gives Tottenham no credit for the resilience shown to get late goals against Wolves and Bodo/Glimt, but instead puts it down to luck.
Merson’s Everton assessment is equally bizarre, as he states that Beto, the centre forward, is their biggest problem. Despite this, he has predicted an ‘entertaining draw’ with two goals for each team.
Tottenham have been poor recently and Beto has been far from adaquate in front of goal, but Merson’s comments feel fuelled by his disdain towards Thomas Frank’s team.
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