Everton boss David Moyes hopes Gareth Bale is missing from Tottenham's line-up today.

The Spurs winger is struggling to shake off a hamstring injury and Moyes acknowledges that is a boost for his team in the clash of ­Champions League contenders.

Moyes said: "I hope he's still ­missing. It wouldn't be a disaster at all for us if he didn't play.

"Gareth Bale is an outstanding ­talent. He's got something different - his movement, his speed, his ­ability, now, to score.

"And he's still improving.

"I don't want to say he's one of the best talents worldwide because sometimes we have blinkers on. There are a lot of good talents in a lot of leagues around the world.

"But he is ­certainly one of the best in our league and he can be unplayable.

"We've tended to do quite well against him with Phil Neville and Seamus Coleman, but his role has changed slightly.

"He's found himself coming off the line a bit more, he's not tied down as much. So, instead of dribbling and beating you off the touchline, he can do it in the middle of the field, where there are bigger spaces to run."