Tottenham Turn to Solanke as Goal Drought Tests Everton Home Record
Spurs chase a first league goal of the season against unbeaten Everton
LONDON — Dominic Solanke will make his first Premier League start of the season as Tottenham Hotspur overhaul their attacking lineup against Everton at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Saturday. Spurs are attempting to end a three-game scoring drought.
Tottenham have collected only one point from their opening three league matches of the 2026/27 campaign, taking it from a scoreless draw against Nottingham Forest. They are one of three Premier League clubs yet to score this season, alongside Aston Villa and Coventry City.
Ainsley Maitland-Niles earned his first start for Everton after scoring a 96th-minute long-range equalizer in the 2-2 draw with Manchester United. Everton arrived in London unbeaten in four matches across all competitions and with five Premier League points.
Spurs have never begun a league season without scoring in their first four matches. Their last four-game scoreless run came in August and September 2006, including a 2-0 home defeat by Everton. Maitland-Niles replaced Merlin Rohl, who was left out of the squad, while Christian Norgaard was unavailable because of injury.
Maitland-Niles scored on his league debut for the Toffees after previously scoring once in 109 Premier League appearances. He entered the match seeking to become only the fourth player in Everton history to score in each of his first two league appearances for the club, following Brian McBride in 2003, Romelu Lukaku in 2013, and Richarlison in 2018.
Tottenham made four changes to their starting eleven, bringing in Solanke, defender Andy Robertson, midfielder Mateus Fernandes, and Archie Gray. Transfer deadline-day signing Tosin Adarabioyo was named in the matchday squad for the first time, while James Maddison returned to the bench after recovering from a shoulder injury.
Antonin Kinsky started in goal for Tottenham behind Gray, Jan Paul van Hecke, Micky van de Ven, and Robertson. Savio, Rodrigo Bentancur, Fernandes, and Sandro Tonali made up the midfield, with Omar Marmoush and Solanke paired in attack. Martin Dubravka, Adarabioyo, Marcos Senesi, Conor Gallagher, Maddison, Mathys Tel, Lucas Bergvall, Mohammed Kudus, and Ben Davies were named among the substitutes.
Tottenham were still without full-backs Pedro Porro and Destiny Udogie, wingers Mykhailo Mudryk, Dejan Kulusevski, and Wilson Odobert, and midfielder Xavi Simons because of injuries.
Everton selected Jordan Pickford in goal, with Maitland-Niles, James Tarkowski, Jarrad Branthwaite, and Vitalii Mykolenko in defense. Brennan Johnson, Harrison Armstrong, Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, James Garner, and Tyrique George formed the midfield, while Thierno Barry started at forward. Mark Travers, Michael Keane, Jack Grealish, Jake O’Brien, Tyler Dibling, Charly Alcaraz, Hayden Hackney, Tom King, and Braiden Graham were the substitutes.
Everton have forced 28 high turnovers in league play this season, behind only Brighton & Hove Albion with 34 and Crystal Palace with 32. The Merseyside club is tied for the league lead with seven shots created directly from high turnovers, although it has gone winless in its last six away league matches, recording three defeats and three draws.
Tottenham have lost only once in their last 17 league meetings with Everton in north London, recording 12 wins and four draws. Spurs have won the last five, with Everton’s most recent victory coming by 1-0 in September 2020. Tottenham also swept Everton last season by a 4-0 aggregate score, while Everton have never lost three consecutive league matches against Spurs without scoring.
The venue has also been a source of pressure for Tottenham. In their last 12 Premier League matches at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, they have recorded one victory and one clean sheet, the 1-0 win over Everton on the final day of the 2025/26 campaign, alongside four draws and seven defeats. A defeat on Saturday would be Tottenham’s 50th Premier League loss at the stadium.
The match is scheduled to begin at 17:30 BST (12:30 p.m. ET). Domestic television coverage in the United Kingdom will be provided live on Sky Sports Main Event, Sky Sports Premier League, and Sky Sports Ultra.
