Preview Panel - Everton

Welcome to our all new Preview Panel, where we'll tap into the opinions of legends, fans and the media ahead of matches this season. First up, our big Premier League opener against Everton at home on Sunday (4.30pm).

Introducing the panel...

Simon Davies - Welsh international joined us from Peterborough United in January, 2000 and went on to make 147 appearances (18 goals) before a switch to Everton in May, 2005. He stayed at Goodison for two seasons before returning to London and Fulham, making over 150 appearances for the Cottagers, including scoring in the UEFA Europa League Final loss to Atletico Madrid in 2010. 'Digger' won 58 caps for Wales and is now Professional Development Coach back at Posh.

Emma Nottage - Emma is secretary of our North West Spurs Official Supporters Club.

Alasdair Gold - Ali is Tottenham Hotspur correspondent for football.london.

Phil McNulty - Phil is chief football writer at BBC Sport.

How do you feel ahead of this season?

Alasdair: "While there's a little more to be done, the club have made some astute signings in the transfer window, bringing in players who will improve their starting XI. Matt Doherty has been one of the stand-out right-backs (or wing-backs) in the Premier League in the past two years and he will be a great addition to Tottenham's right flank with his potency going forward. Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg adds bite and urgency to the midfield with those remarkable ball recovery stats from last season and Joe Hart is an experienced goalkeeper with big game experience. Most importantly all three are strong characters with big voices and they will be just what Jose Mourinho ordered in his first full season. We know what the Portuguese can do when he properly stamps his mark on a team and after a tough campaign last time around, Spurs should be a lot better in every department this time around with a manager who has been there, done it and probably won the t-shirt."

Simon: "I feel confident for Spurs to have a good season, all dependent on whether they can keep the squad free of injuries as much as possible. I think the strongest team is good enough to get to into the top four."

Emma: "It's a strange start not being able to go to games but I'm really excited to see the new players in action and very optimistic that we'll win some silverware this season. Although it's a tough start with all the games we have to play, I have faith in Jose and the team that we will hit the ground running."

What are your hopes for 2020/21?

Emma: "I'm looking forward to going home to see the team play and helping the team by being the 12th man. I'm hoping that we take the domestic cups seriously as both are winnable competitions and success breeds success. A few more players in key areas... and I hope teams will be afraid to play us."

Alasdair: "My hopes for the 2020/21 campaign is a full season of football and those noisy fans back in stadiums. This has been a year like no other and everyone just wants to get back to some form of normality. The Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, with that enormous South Stand, was built to really give the fans their voice and the games there since the restart just haven't been the same without the roar of more than 60,000 supporters. Mourinho's teams have a history of making their home ground a fortress and that can only truly be done once the 12th man returns. There could well be the odd setback for football in the months ahead as we continue to battle this pandemic but hopefully the game and the world will soon start to get back in its rhythm."

Simon: "Hopefully the team is used to the new stadium and I expect them to turn it into a hard place for visiting teams with the crowd behind them. I think the manager will be looking to go undefeated at home this season."

What is the key to Sunday's opener?

Alasdair: "Spurs' matches against Everton are always entertaining fare, whether it's because they're packed with goals, drama or they're simply a battle. The key to this game could be how quickly both teams' new faces settle. Everton have splashed the cash in recent days on three talented midfielders in Doucoure, Allan and Rodriguez ahead of the season opener, while we've already mentioned Tottenham's new arrivals. The international fixtures mean neither Mourinho nor Ancelotti will have had much time to work with their starting line-ups ahead of the game and the newcomers who gel quickest with their team-mates will be crucial. First games of the season are usually unpredictable affairs as players find their fitness, but the relatively quick turnaround and flurry of friendlies and those internationals should make for a full-blooded, high tempo opener in north London."

Emma: "We're unbeaten in the last few seasons at home against Everton (you have to go back to 2008 for their last win in N17) so I think I think it will be a win for us. Both teams will have new signings on display wanting to make an impact, so the key could be which ever team gels on the day and we need to score more than them! Hopefully Harry Kane will hit the ground running."

Simon: "It sounds simple, but you just want to win. It’s always hard to gauge where you are during pre-season and this one especially with the way last season ended, so a win is most important however it comes. Hopefully the confidence will follow and the team will be up and running."

Any first day memories or stories?

Emma: "Last season against Villa. We were losing 1-0 but came back and went on to win 3-1. Tanguy Ndombele scored on his competitive debut and the stadium erupted after his curling dive from 20 yards. That brushed away the cobwebs from the Champions League Final and gave me something to smile about."

Alasdair: "For me there's always one opening day game that sticks in my head. It came on 20 August, 1994 and it was immortalised by a certain goal celebration. I was born into a Spurs-supporting family and as a child, the arrival of Jurgen Klinsmann in N17 was the stuff of dreams. His debut in the opening game at Sheffield Wednesday was perfect, the German rising highest to head home the winner and then came that celebration. With that spreadeagled slide on his stomach, arms outstretched across the grass, he disarmed all who had labelled him a diver and a cheat. An iconic football moment was born and it began a Premier League charm offensive from the World Cup winner, accompanied by goals aplenty, including two in his second game, at home against Everton no less."

Simon: "Probably my biggest memory from an opening day was actually playing Everton at Goodison Park back in August, 2002. Wayne Rooney made his debut at 16 and the buzz that was around him... the result was 2-2."

One for Simon...

Now Professional Development Coach at his first club Peterborough United - he joined Posh in 1997, before five years here at Spurs, 2000-2005 - we asked 'Digger' how it was going at London Road...

Simon: "Things are going well at Posh, I'm really enjoying the work and learning all the time. We managed to win our league last year for the first time and and got three professionals over the line, which is the main part of the job, so the Academy is in a good place now and hopefully we can start to see some of the boys break into the first team in the coming years."

View from Everton - Phil McNulty

Phil has worked at the very highest level of football reporting for years - including five World Cups. Born in Liverpool, he also knows Merseyside football inside-out...

How are things at Goodison ahead of the first game of the 20/21 season?

Phil: "There was an air of pessimism around Goodison Park a few weeks ago purely because of the poor end to last season and the suggestions that any new signings would only arrive late in the window. The saving grace was the presence of manager Carlo Ancelotti, whose class and good humour has already made him a hugely popular figure with Everton fans - even before you get to his stellar track record and reputation in the game. And, helped by the pulling power of Ancelotti, the mood has been transformed with arrival of Allan from Napoli, Watford’s Abdoulaye Doucoure and the real headline-grabber James Rodriguez from Real Madrid. Ancelotti rightly identified Everton’s poor midfield as his priority, adding steel and energy with Allan and Doucoure, which chimed with exactly what the fans were feeling. The brutal truth is that Allan and Rodgriguez, who have both worked with Ancelotti and regard him as a father figure, would not have considered Everton had he not been at the club. Ancelotti’s presence is regarded by Everton’s supporters as their best chance of success for a very long time. They respect his modest approach despite his success and believe he is the man behind the new signings and the renewed optimism."

What are your thoughts on the James Rodriguez signing?

Phil: "There is an element of risk as James is 29 and not had much game time at all at Real Madrid. Can he recapture the magic that made him the Golden Boy of the 2014 World Cup? Does he have the physical capacity to cope with the Premier League? These are questions that remain to be answered but the fee is understood to be relatively low, some suggestions as little as £12m, and the hope is that Ancelotti can once again get the best out of a player who flourished under him at Real and again on loan at Bayern Munich. If Ancelotti can do this, Everton will have pulled off a masterstroke. James seems up for the challenge of proving himself and his arrival has created huge excitement among Everton fans. Even before he has kicked a ball he has raised the global profile of Everton in spectacular fashion. Rodriguez is the eighth biggest social media star of any sportsman with 95.8m followers and Everton launched a targeted marketing campaign to celebrate the deal, lighting up the iconic billboards in Times Square in New York City, a skyscraper in Bogota and also in Miami, as well as around Merseyside, where the city’s famous Albert Dock was lit up with a giant projection of the player in his Everton shirt. The football side of the deal maybe a gamble but in marketing terms it is already a winner."

How do you think this Premier League opener will pan out?

Phil: "I think Spurs will be favourites as they start their first full season under Mourinho although it remains to be seen just how match sharp all their players are given the quick turnaround between this and last season. I think Everton will present a sterner challenge than when Spurs won 1-0 after the restart last season, purely because their midfield will have a more competitive edge, but I go for Mourinho’s side to secure another narrow win."

Everton's targets for 2020/21?

Phil: "Everton had hopes of reaching the Europa League after some very good results under Ancelotti before lockdown but they hit the buffers in the latter stages of the season to finish 12th. Ancelotti will regard European football as his aim this season and feels he has the reinforcements to achieve it. Top four is not realistic but this already looks a much better Everton squad than last season and there is always the chance owner Farhad Moshiri, who relishes the possibility of an ambitious deal and is never shy to finance them, may allow Ancelotti another dip into the market before the window closes."