Everton FC correspondent Joe Thomas on the first return to Tottenham Hotspur since the miserable end to last season
David Moyes shows his frustration during Everton's defeat at Tottenham Hotspur on the final day of last season
David Moyes shows his frustration during Everton's defeat at Tottenham Hotspur on the final day of last season
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Everton still feel like a club scarred by what happened last time it visited Tottenham Hotspur.
What was left of the opportunity to qualify for Europe had been ended by the collapse against Sunderland the week before and the devastation hung over the club for the last week of the campaign. When the Blues failed to make a Spurs side that needed a win to survive work for their three points, the mood around the club hit its lowest point of a season that, for so long, held so much promise.
The spectre of that disappointment loomed over the club for most of the summer. While Everton have started the season well - a start that deserves credit given the backdrop it has been set against - all that has happened is the mess of the final weeks has been overshadowed by more turbulence - the exploration of a sale of Harrison Armstrong, a deadline day that left the club short of players and the new instability caused by the Friedkin Group’s apparent pursuit of outside investment.
David Moyes’ position has been strengthened by the turmoil of the past fortnight, particularly given the squad that he has been left with has shown remarkable resilience to continue unbeaten.
But this return to north London so soon after the last visit feels like an opportunity to banish the ghosts that haunted the club across June and July.
It has to be seen that way by the club, too. Tottenham is one of those places the Blues have found notoriously difficult to win at. Roberto De Zerbi has rebuilt the Spurs squad to the tune of more than £400m. There is a lot of talent across the squad and no doubt players who will pose a threat.
But Everton have plenty going for them, too. The squad may be small but, right now, it is fully fit with the exception of Christian Norgaard.
Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall told me this week the players are fuelled by a desire to prove their doubters wrong and they have made a good start to the campaign. They have created lots of chances and shown resilience to salvage points in stoppage time in their last two games.
That was no mean feat given the Bournemouth trip was played against the backdrop of supporters protesting the potential sale of Armstrong before the Manchester United match followed a traumatic week of developments.
They should head to Tottenham with no fear - this is a chance to play with the freedom they may have found unavailable to them in recent seasons, even last year, when the hosts were buoyed by a desperate crowd and the Blues entered the game on a low.
I have spent much of this week trying to work out what would be more Everton. Would it be to struggle against a side that is yet to score a goal this season? Or would it be to go to north London and finally win having failed to have done so last season, when a nervous, scared Spurs would have been relegated with a defeat?
I have no idea what to expect but I am hoping Saturday evening will be the latest example of the away-day fight that Moyes has brought to the club since his return. Last season ended badly and that deserved scrutiny. But the failure was to grasp the opportunity that emerged after the demolition of Chelsea.
I disagreed with the assertion of CEO Angus Kinnear on the eve of the season that last season was a failure. Even when I have been critical of how the year ended, I have maintained that there were serious positives that could be taken even if the club ended in the same league position as the season before.
One of them was the ability to break atrocious records away from home - from Bournemouth to Man Utd to Aston Villa, momentous wins were celebrated across the country, by a side galvanised by the presence of the likes of Dewsbury-Hall and Jack Grealish.
This will be tough but I would love to see that pair lead Everton to another incredible away day at Spurs and, while it might not happen, I see no reason to think it should not happen.