Everton will conduct a late fitness check on midfielder Idrissa Gueye on Saturday ahead of Sunday’s clash with Tottenham Hotspur, according to the Liverpool Echo.
The newspaper claims that the Toffees are sweating over whether the 29-year-old is fit to face Spurs, with the player having missed last week’s defeat to Manchester City.
The former Aston Villa man is currently considered a doubt for the contest, potentially landing a hammer blow to Marco Silva’s sides’ hopes.
Gylfi Sigurdsson played in a slightly deeper role against the champions last time out, but Silva does have the likes of Tom Davies and Morgan Schneiderlin as additional options.
OPINION
Silva must have his fingers crossed that the Senegal international passes his fitness check on Saturday. Gueye is so important to everything the Toffees do and is undoubtedly one of their most important players. He has formed a very effective partnership with Barcelona loanee Andre Gomes in the middle of the park this campaign, and Silva will be eager to get the pair of them back together against Spurs. It was interesting to see Sigurdsson playing a bit deeper against City and you wonder whether the Everton boss will go with that approach again. Having Davies or Schneiderlin in midfield would surely provide more defensive solidity than the Iceland international, and considering Tottenham’s attacking talent Silva would be wise to consider one of that pair should Gueye not be passed fit for the game at Goodison Park. Still, the manager’s first choice would obviously be to have Gueye available, so let’s hope that’s the case.