Premier League preview: Everton v Tottenham

Everton could rue the absence of influential attacking midfielder Tim Cahill when Tottenham visit Goodison Park on Wednesday.

The Toffees are 13th on the Premier League table with 22 points, a mere three points clear of the drop zone, with just one victory from their past 10 games.

They next face a pair of tricky fixtures against Tottenham and Liverpool respectively, and making matters worse for manager David Moyes is the absence of Cahill, who is currently in Qatar to take part in Australia’s Asian Cup campaign.

Cahill has scored nine Premier League goals for Everton this season, and his attacking nous will be sorely missed in a line-up that has otherwise struggled to find the back of the net.

“We’ve got some massive games coming up which I am not going to be a part of so it’s going to be hard on the boys,” Cahill told Sport360.

“Tottenham, Liverpool, it’s going to be a hard couple of weeks for Everton and I just wish all the boys and the manager luck because the results haven’t been the best. But it’s an honour to be playing for your country.”

The good news for Everton is that Harry Redknapp’s side have not recorded a clean sheet away from White Hart Lane in their past 10 league games.

Nevertheless, Spurs have risen to fourth on the table on the back of successive wins over Aston Villa (2-1), Newcastle United (2-0) and Fulham (1-0), and the form of Gareth Bale has been particularly impressive, with the Welshman netting five goals from his past eight league appearances.

Apart from Cahill, Moyes will also be without Johnny Heitinga (knee), while fellow defender Phil Jagielka, who played through a thigh strain against Stoke and scored his second own goal in three games, may be rested.

Right-back Alan Hutton is Redknapp’s only fresh injury concern, having limped off during Spurs’ New Year’s Day win over Fulham, while Jermain Defoe and Younes Kaboul are still unavailable due to suspension.

Tom Huddlestone (ankle), Ledley King (groin) and Jamie O’Hara (back) remain long-term absentees.