Tottenham Hotspur 0-1 Everton: 5 talking points | Premier League 2020-21

#3 Did Son's poor decision-making cost Tottenham?

Son Heung Min's poor decision-making may have cost Spurs a goal today.

For as bad as Tottenham were during this game, things could've been very different had Son Heung-min made a better decision during the first half.

The chance came midway through the period and actually began with an Everton corner. Lucas Moura collected Eric Dier's powerful header, and the Brazilian shrugged off his marker to start a quick break.

Lucas' ball was picture-perfect and found Son. It appeared that all the South Korean needed to do was to slot a pass through to Harry Kane – who made an excellent run through the centre and was wide open – for Tottenham to take the lead.

Unfortunately, Son dallied on the ball a little too much, and was only able to find Dele Alli. Multiple Everton defenders surrounded the England man, and Jordan Pickford comfortably saved his shot.

This was probably Tottenham's best chance throughout the match and showed the tight margins that top Premier League teams are working with. Had Son found Kane, Tottenham might be the ones celebrating tonight.

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#4 Jordan Pickford was fantastic for Everton

Everton goalkeeper Jordan Pickford had a fantastic game today

Everton undoubtedly deserved to win this game in the end, but when picking a Man of the Match, you'd find it hard to look beyond their goalkeeper, Jordan Pickford. The England international had come under fire for his performances in the second half of the 2019-20 campaign, but today he looked fantastic.

Pickford made excellent saves from Dele Alli and Matt Doherty in the first half. He was also pretty solid and assured in his handling of crosses that came into the box.

The English custodian commanded his penalty area brilliantly, made numerous catches and clearances. Pickford never faltered whenever Tottenham's players put him under pressure, particularly from set-pieces. In the end, he finished the game with five successful saves.

After showing such questionable form last season, Pickford will have to perform on this level for a number of games before faith in him is fully restored. However, on this form, the clamour for Nick Pope or Dean Henderson to replace him in goal for England should certainly quieten.

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#5 Kane's rustiness should be a worry for Mourinho

Harry Kane looked very rusty in today's game.

When Tottenham hit their stickiest patch last season – the period between January and March – most of their problems were blamed on the fact that star striker Harry Kane was out with a hamstring injury. When the England captain returned post-lockdown and scored seven goals in nine games, that feeling was only amplified.

However, today's game felt like a regression for Kane as well as Tottenham. He'd appeared to have gained his sharpness back during the summer matches. But today he looked rustier than ever and was arguably Tottenham's least effective player.

Sure, the England captain was primarily starved of service and Spurs lacked creativity throughout. But it's hard to argue that Kane was in any way effective.

The striker had the lowest pass success rate of any Tottenham player (56%), made the least amount of passes (16), had just 27 touches overall, and was only able to take two shots on goal. Realistically, the only flash of inspiration he had came in the first half, when he set up Matt Doherty for a shot on goal.

Kane will undoubtedly improve as time goes on, but he was painfully off the pace in this match, and that has to be a concern for Mourinho.