Ange Postecoglou is aiming to improve Tottenham's clinical edge as they chase their first win of the Premier League season against Everton on Saturday.
Spurs dominated the first half against Leicester City in their opener on Monday, but only left the King Power Stadium with a point after Jamie Vardy's equaliser in the 1-1 draw.
Postecoglou's side had 15 shots in that game, with seven of those on target, but only created 1.18 expected goals.
With Spurs aiming to challenge for a Champions League place this season, the Australian is keen to finetune their play in the final third sooner rather than later.
"Just really disappointed we lacked a little cutting edge in the front third, made some poor decisions, lacked some composure and didn't get the reward our football deserved," Postecoglou said.
"Everyone performed well, but ultimately that defeats the purpose of what we're trying to achieve and that's winning games of football and bridging the gap to the top teams.
"And the performance of the players in general was very, very good, but we need to turn those good performances into outcomes."
Meanwhile, Everton prop up the early standings in the league after a heavy 3-0 defeat to Brighton last weekend.
Ashley Young's red card compounded their misery as they struggled to test the Seagulls in the final third, but James Tarkowski is confident they can stamp out the mistakes to kick-start their season this weekend.
"It's not a reality check. We know the level of this league and how difficult it is," Tarkowski said. "You'll get punished if you make mistakes.
"The foundation which we build on – and we will continue to do – a lot of it was on show. Minor details will cost you in this league and we’ll see that."
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Tottenham – James Maddison
Against no side does James Maddison have more Premier League assists than he does against Everton (four), with each of his four against the Toffees coming in his last three appearances.
He is also off the mark for the season, having assisted Pedro Porro's opener in their 1-1 draw with Leicester last time out.
Everton – Jack Harrison
Despite Everton suffering a heavy defeat to Brighton in their Premier League opener, Jack Harrison was a bright spark for the Toffees.
He had the most shots (three), the most touches in the box (six) and completed the most successful dribbles (three) of anyone in the Everton side.
MATCH PREDICTION: TOTTENHAM WIN
Tottenham have won their first Premier League home match in five of the last six seasons, with the only exception being a 1-0 defeat to Everton in 2020-21.
However, Spurs have scored more Premier League goals against Everton both overall (102) and at home (63) than they have versus any other opponent.
After drawing their Premier League opener with Leicester, Spurs are looking to avoid not winning either of their first two games in a single campaign since 2015-16 (drew one, lost one).
Meanwhile, Everton have not won a Premier League game in the month of August in any of the last three seasons (drawn three, lost six), losing each of their last four such games without scoring. Their last such victory was in 2021 at Brighton (2-0).
Sean Dyche's side do not have the best record against teams from the capital, winning just three of their last 20 such top-flight matches (drawn six, lost 11), though those three wins all came consecutively between September and November last season.
After winning four consecutive Premier League away games between October and December last season, Everton are now winless in their last 11 on the road (drawn four, lost seven). Nine of those have come in 2024, leaving the Toffees as the only ever-present side over the two campaigns without an away win this calendar year.
OPTA WIN PROBABILITY
Tottenham – 55.3%
Draw – 23%
Everton – 21.6%
Forest complete loan move for Villa defender Moreno
Nottingham Forest have signed Aston Villa full-back Alex Moreno on a season-long loan with a view to a permanent deal.
Moreno joined Villa from Real Betis in January 2023 and has made a total of 40 Premier League appearances for Unai Emery's men, including 21 last season.
He started 11 times last term but spent most of his time as a backup to Lucas Digne, who made 27 starts as Emery's team finished fourth to secure Champions League qualification.
He becomes Forest's eighth signing of the current transfer window, after Elliot Anderson, Nikola Milenkovic, Ramon Sosa, Jota Silva, Marko Stamenic, Carlos Miguel and Eric da Silva Moreiro.
Forest's chief football officer Ross Wilson said: "Alex is a player we have had a long-standing interest in so we are naturally all very happy to see him arrive at Nottingham Forest.
"He has amassed significant experience in LaLiga and the Premier League, and he brings all of that quality and experience to our group now."
Martinez eyes trophy with Aston Villa after contract renewal
Emiliano Martinez wants to win a trophy with Aston Villa after penning a new long-term contract with the club.
The Argentina goalkeeper has signed a new deal to remain at Villa Park until 2029, having impressed since joining the club from Arsenal in September 2020.
The World Cup winner is delighted with the constant progression of the club, culminating in Champions League qualification last season, but he still hopes to achieve more success in the coming years.
He told the club's website: "Since I joined the club, my dream was to be in the Champions League. We have achieved that. Like I said, the club is improving every year."
Martinez, who has won two Copa America titles with his national side along with the World Cup, now wants to translate his international success to the club stage, as Villa have been without a major honour since 1996.
He added: “I achieved everything in international football with Argentina and now I still think we can win a trophy here.
“That is something missing in this club. And I will have a go here in the next four years to achieve that.”
Speid welcomes Cavalier's 2-0 win over Mount Pleasant as a solid platform for Caribbean Cup campaign
Cavalier Head Coach Rudolph Speid says the 2-0 win over Mount Pleasant FA to kick off their 2024 Concacaf Caribbean Cup campaign provides a solid platform to build on in their charge to achieve long-term goals this season.
Christopher Ainsworth (ninth) and Shaquille Stein (25th) got the job done for Cavalier in a keenly contest encounter at Sabina Park on Tuesday.
“The win is very important, because when teams are in your zone and they’re from the same country or same city, it’s really a derby. It doesn’t matter how strong each team is, it’s a derby, and derby games are the most difficult games you’ll come up against, so getting the first win is always important,” Speid said in a post-game interview.
Cavalier, the reigning Jamaica Premier League (JPL) champions and runners-up in the 2023 edition of the Concacaf Caribbean Cup, were more purposeful at the start, and they were duly rewarded when Ainsworth converted from the 12-yard spot after Stein was felled inside the red zone by Jamoi Topey.
Mount Pleasant created a few half chances in their press for the equaliser, but they found Cavalier’s defenders and goalkeeper Jeadine White in defiant mode.
Stein later doubled Cavalier’s lead when he expertly headed home from Jalmaro Calvin’s weighted cross.
Try as they did, Mount Pleasant’s attackers couldn’t find a way past White, who ended the contest with six crucial saves, including a last-minute reflex stop diving low at his near post to deny Rayonne Mbougain in time added.
Cavalier also had their fair share of chances to add to their tally, the best of which fell to Kaile Auvray in the 49th minute, but Mount Pleasant’s custodian Tafari Chambers came up big to stop the close-range effort.
Speid lauded his team for a solid defensive effort, which ensured they sit atop Group A on three points heading into the second round of games on August 29.
Then, Cavalier will host Trinidad and Tobago outfit Police FC in Kingston, while Mount Pleasant FA will look to rebound against CFU Club Shield winners, Arnett Gardens FC, on August 27 at Sabina Park.
“We did not know what Mount Pleasant was going to do. We decided we were going to be tough on defence. The defence, including the goalkeeper, stood out. It is not easy to keep a clean sheet against those players from Mount Pleasant, as they can turn a game on its head,” Speid reasoned.
“So our concentration was spot on from minute one. Although we defended stoutly, we were positive all the time. We attacked when the occasion aroused, and we didn’t hesitate. We could have even scored two more,” he noted.
His counterpart Harold Thomas, who took over from Theodore “Tappa” Whitmore in June, believes his side lacked the hunger and conviction of their opponents.
“One of the things we have to do is look at the players who are hungry for it. You hear Cavalier’s approach to the game, they have a group of youngsters that don’t have the kind of reputation that our players have, but they’re hungry. They want to make a name for themselves,” Thomas stated.
“We need to find players who want to make a name for themselves or even those who have a name to improve their credibility. We know the quality of the players. There are some things we have to change, but the quality is there. The motivation will be a great factor because what we saw today (Tuesday) wasn’t a team as hungry as they should have been,” he added.
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