Tottenham's inability to kill off games could prove incredibly costly to their Champions League aspirations come the end of the campaign. Minutes away from moving into third in the Premier League table despite the current issues surrounding the club, Spurs let their 1-0 lead slip with Everton restoring parity in the 90th minute courtesy of a stunning effort from Michael Keane.
The same happened in their previous Premier League match after squandering a 3-1 lead at bottom side Southampton as the hosts rescued an unlikely point following James Ward-Prowse's stoppage-time penalty. On their previous away trip they again failed to come away with maximum points after Adama Traore punished them for their wastefulness in front of goal with a late winner at Molineux.
Spurs just keep shooting themselves in the foot and the Premier League table could look a whole lot different if they had put games to bed. In the top four for the time being after their draw at Goodison Park, the Lilywhites are on 50 points just like Newcastle United and Manchester United but both of their rivals have two games in hand on them.
READ MORE: Cristian Stellini may have no option but to reverse Antonio Conte's controversial Tottenham call
Tottenham were far from their best against Sean Dyche's men but the game was there for the taking after Abdoulaye Doucoure had seen red just prior to the hour mark. Taking the lead ten minutes later courtesy of Harry Kane's penalty, the visitors using their one-man advantage to their benefit in the remaining 22 minutes and netting a second goal would have dealt Everton a hammer blow in their quest to stay up.
However, it was as if the roles had been reversed and Tottenham appeared to be the team playing with ten men going on how the encounter panned out in the closing stages. A chance or two was always going to come Everton's way despite their numerical disadvantage, yet they put their opponents under intense pressure and finally got the goal their persistence deserved as Keane left Hugo Lloris motionless as his shot whistled past him.
As we have seen numerous times in the past, Tottenham elected to sit back and try to see out the contest only to be duly punished for their defensive play in the process. Speaking to the media after the game, captain Lloris rued the team for dropping the intensity and for retreating back at a time when they could have pushed on for a second goal.
"Yes. When you look at the way we managed the end of the game, it should have been better," said the former France international when asked if it was two points dropped. "Especially in possession. We could have kept them away from our goal with good pressure but we started to drop as a team on the pitch. We dropped the intensity and the red card didn't help the situation because the belief was back in that team and until the end they pushed, and they got the goal.
"But if you look at the overall performance, this is the most important thing. A lot of positive things, even if we could be able to create more chances. The only regret is that last 20 minutes. 1-0 up, we have the legs and the quality to go for the second goal. But we cannot play again, we have to move on, recover because Saturday is going to be a tough game."
Tottenham's game management in the final 22 minutes was wretched and it allowed Everton to dominate proceedings at a time when the visitors should have been in full control. As per The Athletic, Spurs had three touches in the opposition box once they had gone 1-0 up compared to Everton's 13, they had 22 touches in the final third with Everton coming in at 79 and the hosts edged possession 52 per cent to 48 per cent.
Stellini's side completely played into Everton's hands and it was no surprise that they didn't hold on for an important win. Had the game gone on a tad longer with Everton very much in the ascendency and pushing on for a winner, Spurs could quite easily have lost going on how they finished proceedings.
This is nothing new when it comes to Tottenham as they do have this natural habit of retreating back and trying to hold on to a lead when they should instead be pushing on and killing their opponents off. It happened during Jose Mourinho's tenure as boss, with Kane coming out after their 3-1 win over Sheffield United in January 2021 and stating that their defensive mindset was not coming from the head coach.
"It's never been the manager saying that (we should sit back), it's been us on the pitch having a mentality where we want to drop and hold on to the win," explained the striker (via Mail Online). "The most important thing is us as players to go and take responsibility, and we did that today."
While there are certain games when Spurs would need to sit back and try and defend their lead, Monday's game at Everton was certainly not one of those. Their proneness to stepping back and trying to hang on has cost them far too many times in the past and it will continue to do so in the future unless they change their ways.
Stellini needs to eradicate it in his remaining nine game as acting head coach and the same goes for the new man at the helm come the summer. Tottenham really are their own worst enemy at times and it needs to change if they are to move forward as a club.
READ NEXT:
Hugo Lloris gives insight into Cristian Stellini's Tottenham after Antonio Conte's departure
Stellini makes change to Conte plan, Danjuma spared - 5 things spotted in Everton vs Tottenham
Tottenham player ratings vs Everton: Romero on top but Son, Porro, Hojbjerg and Perisic struggle
Every word Stellini said on Tottenham struggles, Harry Kane, the Everton fans and Danjuma
- Fabio Paratici - The man who can no longer be able to tell Daniel Levy what to do at Tottenham
