On Sunday afternoon, Chelsea will host London rivals Tottenham Hotspur at Stamford Bridge in one of the Premier League’s most exciting matches. The Blues are now third in the rankings, eight points ahead of fifth-placed Tottenham Hotspur, although Antonio Conte’s side has four games in hand on the visitors due to a number of recent fixtures being postponed.
Chelsea’s chances of maintaining a championship fight this season have faded in recent weeks, with the Blues winning just one of their previous seven Premier League games and picking up only three points in their last four games. The Blues came back to get a point against Liverpool in a 2-2 draw at the start of the month, but then lost 1-0 to Manchester City in the league last weekend before drawing 1-1 with Brighton & Hove Albion at the Amex on Tuesday night.
Thomas Tuchel’s team is currently third in the league, 12 points behind leaders Man City, who have a game in hand, and eight points ahead of fifth-placed Tottenham Hotspur, who have four games in hand, so their place in the Champions League is far from assured. Chelsea, on the other hand, has already beaten Tottenham twice this month, winning 2-0 at Stamford Bridge in the first leg of their EFL Cup semi-final before prevailing 1-0 in North London in the second game.
The Blues have also won their past four games against Spurs in all competitions, including a 3-0 win at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in September, and are undefeated in England’s top division against the North London club since November 2018.
On Wednesday, Tottenham were involved in an extraordinary encounter against Leicester City; Conte’s side were behind 2-1 until Steven Bergwijn levelled the scores in the 95th minute, then the Netherlands international netted a winner for the capital club in the 97th minute. Spurs have now won three of their past four Premier League matches, and are still undefeated in England’s top division since Conte took over as manager, with the Italian winning six and drawing three of his nine league matches in charge.
Tottenham’s position in the table is even more impressive given that they have a number of games to make up due to COVID-19-related postponements, and the North London club could finish the weekend in fourth place depending on the outcome of Manchester United’s match against West Ham United on Saturday.
Conte, who managed the Blues from 2016 to 2018, winning one Premier League championship and one FA Cup, will undoubtedly know what to expect at Stamford Bridge, and there is no doubt that he will be desperate to pull one over on his former club this weekend. Spurs have had their troubles this season, but finishing in the top four would have to be considered a triumph, and they can still win a cup this season, with Brighton their opponents in the FA Cup’s next round at the start of February.
The news that Trevor Chalobah and Reece James have both returned to training after recent injuries has given Chelsea hope, although neither player will be considered for selection this weekend. Following knee surgery, Ben Chilwell will miss the rest of the season, while Andreas Christensen (COVID-19) and Edouard Mendy (international duty) will also miss out for the home side.
Tuchel has a lot of significant decisions to make in terms of team selection, and a return to a back three might give Malang Sarr a chance to play, while Timo Werner and Mateo Kovacic, who were both replacements against Brighton, could be in line for starts this weekend. Eric Dier has returned to Spurs’ squad following injury, while Son Heung-min and Cristian Romero will be out until after the Christmas break.
Conte has acknowledged that his team has a couple of “new ailments,” but has not identified individuals affected, as the Italian has to examine his squad’s condition after the Leicester match. Despite his brace against Leicester, Bergwijn might be left out of the starting XI, with Lucas Moura and Harry Kane likely to form a front two, while Harry Winks and Oliver Skipp could form a midfield five; Dier could also return to defence, perhaps replacing Japhet Tanganga.
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