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Mauricio Pochettino hails Tottenham's belief after holding out for win over Everton

Romelu Lukaku's late strike forced Tottenham to tighten up and hold the Toffees at bay to claim all three points

White Hart Lane

Sunday 05 March 2017 18:00 GMT

Mauricio Pochettino was happy with the character shown by his players against Everton (Getty)

Mauricio Pochettino hailed his Tottenham Hotspur side’s belief after seeing them reduce Chelsea’s lead at the top of the Premier League to seven points.

Harry Kane’s brace looked to have put Tottenham in the driving seat against Everton on Sunday lunchtime, but Romelu Lukaku struck late on to reduce the hosts’ advantage.

Dele Alli restored the two-goal lead in stoppage time, only for the visitors’ Enner Valencia to round off the scoring with virtually the last kick of the game.

Tottenham vs Everton player ratings

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1/22Tottenham vs Everton player ratings

Tottenham vs Everton player ratings

Hugo Lloris – 5 out of 10

Aside from Lukaku’s strike, it was a very quiet afternoon for Lloris.

Tottenham vs Everton player ratings

Eric Dier – 6 out of 10

Held the shape well and used possession efficiently to begin moves from the back.

Tottenham vs Everton player ratings

Toby Alderweireld – 6 out of 10

Another encouraging display. Cleverly marked Lukaku out of the game for the majority.

Tottenham vs Everton player ratings

Jan Vertonghen – 7 out of 10

Aside from his slip for the Everton goal, he was on exquisite form. He tackled hard and worked relentlessly.

Tottenham vs Everton player ratings

Kyle Walker – 7 out of 10

Was good defensively, but even better going forward. He caused problems for the Everton defence with his deliveries.

Tottenham vs Everton player ratings

Victor Wanyama – 6 out of 10

Rattled the woodwork with a sublime strike. Began a number of Spurs moves going forward.

Tottenham vs Everton player ratings

Mousa Dembele – 5 out of 10

Made a habit of giving possession away with unnecessary inputs of skill.

Getty

Tottenham vs Everton player ratings

Ben Davies – 6 out of 10

Caused problems for Coleman all day and he was tracking back well to support the defence.

Tottenham vs Everton player ratings

Christian Eriksen – 7 out of 10

His deliveries throughout were difficult to defend for Everton. He was a key element to every Spurs attack.

Tottenham vs Everton player ratings

Dele Alli – 6 out of 10

Drifted out of the game at times, but deserved his goal to cap off a great team performance.

Tottenham vs Everton player ratings

Harry Kane – 9 out of 10

Began the scoring with a moment of magic and doubled his tally with another clinical finish. He’s a defenders worst nightmare.

Tottenham vs Everton player ratings

Joel Robles – 4 out of 10

His poor decision to roll the ball out gave Kane his second goal on a plate – should be doing better than that.

Tottenham vs Everton player ratings

Seamus Coleman – 5 out of 10

Gave Davies too much space out wide and should have had more of an input from an attacking perspective.

Tottenham vs Everton player ratings

Ashley Williams – 6 out of 10

Lost the ball for Kane’s second, but it arguably was not his fault. Had a tough day defending the likes of Kane and Eriksen.

Tottenham vs Everton player ratings

Ramiro Funes Mori – 5 out of 10

Looked lost against such striking ability. However, he did make a number of vital tackles throughout.

Tottenham vs Everton player ratings

Leighton Baines – 6 out of 10

Defensively he did his job at the back, but it would have been encouraging to see him moving up the pitch more.

Tottenham vs Everton player ratings

Idrissa Gueye – 7 out of 10

Worked relentlessly throughout and found himself on the end of every loose ball. Clumsy in his challenges at times though.

Tottenham vs Everton player ratings

Morgan Schneiderlin – 5 out of 10

Was also at fault for Kane’s second goal. Incredibly quiet throughout and failed to make an impact.

Tottenham vs Everton player ratings

Gareth Barry – 6 out of 10

Read the game well, but lost most midfield battles – needed to be stronger.

Tottenham vs Everton player ratings

Tom Davies – 5 out of 10

Struggled to find his feet in his new attacking position. Failed to show his ability in possession.

Tottenham vs Everton player ratings

Ross Barkley – 7 out of 10

Continued to create chances from nowhere and was hunting for possession constantly. His work rate is faultless.

Tottenham vs Everton player ratings

Romelu Lukaku – 6 out of 10

Aside from his goal, it was a quiet display from the team’s top goal scorer. He was marked out of the game and received very little service from the midfield.

Lukaku’s strike forced Tottenham to tighten up and protect a lead which had not previously seemed under threat, and Pochettino believes the performance showed his players have the character to keep pressure on the league leaders and last the course.

“The most important is to show that we believe and today we showed that more than talk or speak,” he said.

“It's better that the team showed that performance because they believe we need to be there. It's not up to us, of course, but it's up to us to be there if they [Chelsea] fail.

“The gap is seven points. I'd like to be closer than seven points but if you keep going in that way maybe we will achieve.”

Chelsea travel to West Ham United, who knocked them out of this season’s League Cup, in this week’s Monday night fixture.

Antonio Conte’s side have shown little sign of giving ground to those chasing them, but Pochettino remains confident that his players can push them all the way, especially after recording a ninth consecutive home win.

It is the first time that Tottenham have achieved such a feat in the Premier League era.

“It's fantastic to make history with our supporters,” said Pochettino. “The three points keep us in a very good position in the table. We keep working hard and we need to keep going.”

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