Tottenham v Everton ratings: Vicario 7, Richarlison 8; McNeil 5, Tarkowski 5

Spurs earn hard-fought 2-1 win and extend good run

Guglielmo Vicario 7/10

TOTTENHAM RATINGS: Vicario. Made a comfortable save to deny Garner halfway through the first half. Pulled off a breathtaking save to deny Danjuma in the 84th minute. Lucky to see Danjuma’s effort come off the bar, onto his legs and outside in added time. AFPShow less

Emerson Royal 5/10

Lovely first-time cross to set up Johnson in the penalty area 13 minutes into the game. Started the game well but began to struggle against Harrison as the first-half wore on. AFP

Pedro Porro 5/10

Saw an effort blocked by Branthwaite in the 54th minute. Had a tough time dealing with Danjuma late in the game. PA

Cristian Romero 6/10

Excellent recovery tackle to stop Calvert-Lewin from opening the scoring early in the game. Forced off at half-time with a knee injury. Getty Images

Ben Davies 6/10

Got across quickly to stop an Andre Gomes cross that would have set up Calvert-Lewin for a simple tap in. Made a vital goal-line clearance to deny the visitors a goal in the 84th minute. AFP

Olivier Skipp 6/10

A quiet but effective performance from Skipp at the base of the home side’s midfield. Sat very deep and made several interceptions. Getty Images

Pape Matar Sarr 7/10

Brilliant pass behind the Toffees’ defence to Johnson in the build-up to the home side’s opener. Denied by a good save from Pickford in the 55th minute. Getty Images

Dejan Kulusevski 7/10

Played in the Maddison role just behind the home side’s attack, Kulusevski provided another impressive performance. Had a chance to put the game to bed in the 73rd minute, but Pickford saved his effort. APShow less

Brennan Johnson 8/10

Played in a perfectly weighted low cross for Richarlison to score early in the game. Should have made it two when he got on the end of Emerson’s cross in the 13th minute but failed to keep his effort on target. Played a part in the second goal as his shot got spilled into the path of Son to make it two. ReutersShow less

Son Heung-Min 8/10

Doubled the home side’s lead with a scrambled effort that trickled into the bottom corner. Tried to play Lo Celso in for a simple tap-in late in the game but Mykolenko intercepted his pass. AFP

Richarlison 8/10

Scored for the third consecutive game by opening the scoring from close range in the ninth minute. Forced off with what looked like a back injury in the second half. AP

Eric Dier 6/10

SUBS: Dier (Romero, 47) Came on for the injured Romero and kept things simple. Made several blocks when the away side upped the tempo in search of a late equaliser. EPA

Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg 6/10

(Richarlison, 63) Tucked in as almost a third centreback and helped prevent an equaliser. Stopped an Everton counterattack with a good interception a few minutes after coming on. Giovani Lo Celso (Sarr, 73) - N/A. PAShow less

Jordan Pickford 6/10

EVERTON RATINGS: Pickford. Denied Johnson with a strong hand but couldn’t do anything about Son’s rebound. Kept the away side in the game by making an important save when faced one-on-one against Kuluselvski. Getty ImagesShow less

Nathan Patterson 5/10

Vital last-ditch tackle to stop Kulusevski from running through on goal in the 44th minute. Shrugged off the ball too easily by Kulusevski to create a one-on-one chance against Pickford. Reuters

Vitalii Mykolenko 5/10

Got caught flat-footed by Pape Sarr’s pass to Johnson en-route the home side’s opener. Vital interception to stop Son’s pass from reaching Lo Celso late in the game. EPA

James Tarkowski 5/10

Lost Richarlison's run towards the far post, allowing the Brazilian to open scoring from close range. Put his body on the line to stop Sarr’s effort in the 65th minute. AP

Jarrad Branthwaite 6/10

Important block to thwart Porro in the second half. Impressive for the away side early in the game. AFP

Idrissa Gueye 6/10

Forced off early in the game with an injury. Getty Images

Amadou Onana 7/10

A disciplined performance from Onana after he was tasked to sit just ahead of the Toffees’ backline due to Gueye’s early substitution. Vital sliding tackle to stop Son from kickstarting a Spurs counterattack midway through the second half. PAShow less

James Garner 7/10

Had the visitors’ first real effort on goal with a shot that was well claimed by Vicario in the 34th minute. Tested Vicario again with a shot towards the bottom corner but the effort was saved. Clipped the post with an effort that went wide on the hour mark. ReutersShow less

Jack Harrison 7/10

Forced Vicario into a brilliant save on the stroke of half-time but would have probably done better if he had taken his effort early. Gorgeous pass with the outside of the boot to set up Garner on the half-hour mark. PAShow less

Dwight McNeil 5/10

Should have done better with his effort when Onana found him in space a quarter of an hour into the game. Displayed terrible defensive awareness when he allowed Johnson to get past him unchallenged in the build-up to the home side’s second goal. EPAShow less

Dominic Calvert-Lewin 6/10

Took too long on the ball when played through on goal and allowed Romero to make the block in the seventh minute. Tested Vicario with a glancing header in the 16th minute. Thought he had pulled one back for the visitors, but his effort was ruled out for a foul in the build-up by Gomes. EPAShow less

Andre Gomes 8/10

SUBS: Gomes (Gueye, 24) Played a wonderful pass into Harrison's path to set up a big chance in the second minute of first-half extra time. Finally pulled one back for the visitors with a lovely effort from a tight angle in the 82nd minute. Getty ImagesShow less

Arnault Danjuma 7/10

(Harrison, 68) Called Vicario into action with a fierce effort that was punched wide. Pulled off an impressive bit of skill to skip past two Spurs players on the byline. Went close to making it 2-2 with a volley that came off the crossbar in added time. Beto (Onana, 79) - N/A. EPAShow less

Tottenham Hotspur continued their good form to end Everton’s own fine run in a 2-1 home victory on Saturday.

Everton had won their previous four league games without conceding a goal but their former striker Richarlison breached their defence with a neat finish after nine minutes and Son Heung-min scored the second nine minutes later as Spurs made a rollicking start.

Both teams did not hold back and that resulted in an all-action game but the visitors wasted several good chances.

Andre Gomes ensured a nervous finish for Spurs when he smashed home after 82 minutes but the hosts survived further scares to secure their third win in a row – following a five-game winless run - and lift them above champions Manchester City into fourth place.

It was another good outing for Vicario Guglielmo who is enjoying an excellent first season at Tottenham and ensured his team emerged victorious on Saturday.

In the second half he had to be at his best, particularly when foiling Arnaut Danjuma moments after Gomes had pulled it back to 2-1.

He was a source of security as his defence routinely got themselves into difficulties playing out from the back.

"He has been strong pretty much from the first game," Tottenham manager Ange Postecoglou said. "Some games we haven't needed a lot and today we did.

"The saves he made but also the way he dealt with corners was so strong - they put so much pressure on the goalkeeper. He's a great shot-stopper and is dealing with a different back four in lots of games. He's got a maturity which helps the team in those moments."

The manager also said that he was not surprised by Richarlison's turnaround; his goal made it four in three matches having scored two in his previous 39.

"He obviously missed a bit of football with his (groin) operation (in November) but he's getting stronger every game. He wasn't struggling before, he just wasn't 100 per cent and he was soldiering on. He just feels a bit freer now both mentally and physically."

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