Tottenham ace Brennan Johnson must target Everton problem area after Sean Dyche ‘we’ll see’ admission
Tottenham are set for a tough task when they host Everton on Saturday (23 December), but Sean Dyche’s recent injury update might make things a little easier for the north London side.
The Toffees have turned their form around incredibly over the past couple of months, transitioning from a team everybody in the Premier League would want to face to a team everybody will now want to avoid.
They are undoubtedly one of the most in-form teams in England’s top flight at this moment in time, having won their last four matches in the competition without conceding a goal.
As a result, Ange Postecoglou’s side, who will be without Yves Bissouma and Destiny Udogie for the visit of Everton, will know that they must be at their best this weekend if they are to have any chance of claiming all three points. However, their opponents’ own list of absentees will certainly help.
Everton were eliminated from the Carabao Cup at the quarter-final stage on Tuesday (19 December) after losing on penalties to Fulham following a 1-1 draw at Goodison Park, and after the match, Dyche provided an update on some of his injured stars.
Seamus Coleman, Ashley Young and Vitaliy Mykolenko were all absent from the matchday squad due to injuries, leaving the club stretched thin at the back and forcing central defender Jarrad Branthwaite to play as a left-back.
When asked if any of his injured stars would be available for the trip to Tottenham, Dyche told the press (Liverpool Echo, 20 December), “We’ll see. The next three days are going to be really important. We’ll make sure there is nothing from tonight, of course, because we are a bit stretched so we will see.”
By all accounts, Branthwaite played quite well, winning four of his five ground duels, and 100 per cent of his aerial duels (three out of three) while making three clearances, one interception and three tackles. He was not dribbled past once and played one key pass going forward (Sofascore).
Nonetheless, this is not Branthwaite’s natural position, and should he be asked to play on the left flank again against Spurs, he could be in for a more difficult afternoon as the level of opposition goes up in the form of Brennan Johnson.
Johnson is beginning to find his feet in north London following his deadline day switch from Nottingham Forest and put in his best performance since joining the club in the 4-1 win against Newcastle United on 10 December.
Throughout that match, the Wales international caused Valentino Livramento plenty of problems, a player who is more experienced at left-back than Branthwaite. Johnson played three key passes and created one big chance, while most impressively managing to complete 100 per cent of his dribbles (four out of four).
He also hit the woodwork on two separate occasions as his running on and off the ball caused nightmares for those in the Magpies’ back four, particularly Livramento.
He linked up well with Dejan Kulusevski, who was influential in the number 10 role, playing five key passes throughout the match.
As seen in the image above, he made a run off of Livramento, which Kulusevski spotted.
What is key is the presence of Pedro Porro, with the right-back’s constant threat in the attacking areas providing an overload and giving Livramento too much to think about.
Johnson was able to successfully get in behind and was desperately unlucky not to get his name on the scoresheet as he saw his shot bounce back off the frame of the goal.
In the following match, a 2-0 win against Nottingham Forest at The City Ground on Friday 15 December, Johnson was forced off after just 32 minutes against his former side after receiving a nasty cut to the face.
Before this, he had completed 100 per cent of his passes, and even when he did come off, Kulusevski moved to the right and proved to be just as effective. The Swede scored, provided an assist, created two big chances, completed 93 per cent of his passes and was successful with 100 per cent of the long balls he played forward (three out of three).
This goes to show, that no matter what, Tottenham have quality and experience on the right, which might prove too much for Branthwaite. Mykolenko has been the main choice at left-back this season, starting 12 of Everton’s 16 league games, and has played well.
As per fbref, the Ukrainian ranks in the top three per cent of his positional peers in the league this season for the number of tackles he has made (3.59 per 90), and the top eight per cent for the number of dribblers he has tackled in one-on-one situations (2.01 per 90)
Everton fans would certainly be more comfortable if it was the 24-year-old starting at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, and after Dyche’s “we’ll see” admission, it will have their supporters sweating and Johnson and Kulusevski chomping at the bit.
In other Tottenham news, a Spurs expert has suggested two Under-18 stars could become the new Porro and Destiny Udogie.