Inconsistency has been Chelsea’s major undoing so far this season in the Premier League as the Blues have found themselves struggling at mid-table as a result. Tottenham have been up and down this campaign but have remained around the top four and are looking to finish the season well.
Chelsea FC were unarguably the busiest Premier League team during the summer transfer window, breaking the bank to snap up a lot of exciting talents after securing the services of former Spurs and PSG manager Mauricio Pochettino.
The Blues signed a lot of young and exciting talents including Moises Caicedo from Brighton and Hove Albion, Belgian defensive midfielder Romeo Lavia from Southampton, Cole Palmer from last season’s champions Manchester City, Lesley Ugochukwu and Axel Disasi from Ligue 1 sides Stade Rennais and Monaco respectively, Nicolas Jackson from Villarreal, goalkeeper Robert Sanchez from Brighton and Christopher Nkunku from Bundesliga side RB Leipzig.
As for departures, many big names were allowed to leave and ply their trades elsewhere including Kai Havertz who joined Premier League and London rivals Arsenal, Mason Mount who also joined another of the Blues’ big rivals Manchester United and Mateo Kovacic who joined reigning champions Manchester City as a replacement for Gundongan.
Other exits include Kalidou Koulibaly to Al-Ahli, Christian Pulisic, and Reuben Loftus-Cheek to Italian side AC Milan, Edouard Mendy to Al-Ahli, and Ethan Ampadu to Leeds United. Romelu Lukaku, Callum Hudson-Odoi, Kepa Arrizabalaga, Hakim Ziyech, David Fofana, and Lewis Hall secured loan transfers to Roma, Nottingham Forest, Real Madrid, Galatasaray, Union Berlin, and Newcastle respectively while Cesar Azpiliqueta, N’Golo Kante, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Tiemoué Bakayoko all left for Atletico Madrid, Al-Ittihad, Marseille and FC Lorient respectively on free transfers.
On the pitch, the right performances did not start coming in immediately with the Blues hovering around the relegation zone. The London side won just one of their opening six Premier League games of the season. The side then ended the year with a couple of wins to finish in the top half of the log and have started 2024 very well.
Tottenham Hotspur, despite the numerous injuries in recent times, sit just three points behind fourth spot on the Premier League table. On the other hand, Wolves have gathered some fine results in recent weeks and they have now moved to 11th on the log, the same points as Newcastle United.
Spurs’ most prominent exit over the summer was prolific hitman Harry Kane who left the North London side for Bundesliga big boys Bayern München in search of a new challenge. Other notable exits include Harry Winks who left for relegated Leicester City, Davinson Sanchez and Tanguy Ndombele to Turkish giants Galatasaray, Lucas Moura to Sao Paulo on a free transfer. Sergio Reguilon, Japhet Tanganga, Djed Spence, and Joe Rondon secured loan moves away to Manchester United, FC Augsburg, and Leeds United respectively.
Spurs also acquired Brennan Johnson from Nottingham Forest, English midfielder James Maddison from Leicester City, Dutch center-back Micky van de Ven from VfL Wolfsburg, Pedro Porro from Sporting CP, Dejan Kulusevski from Italian giants Juventus, and current starting goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario from Empoli. Exciting winger Manor Solomon joined from Shakhtar Donetsk on a free transfer while Giovanni Lo Celso returned from his loan spell at Villarreal.
After a very exciting start to the 23/24 Premier League campaign which saw Tottenham Hotspur sit top of the Premier League table after going unbeaten in their first ten games, they have hit a bad patch of form picking up just one point from the last fifteen that have been up for grabs. Their winless run kick-started against fellow London rivals Chelsea in a match that saw them go two men down after Christian Romero was sent off in the 33rd minute for a reckless challenge on international teammate Enzo Fernandez inside the penalty box after which Udogie received his marching orders after committing a second bookable offense in the 55th minute.
The Blues did well to capitalize on the opportunity and hammer their local rivals courtesy of a Nicolas Jackson hat trick. Narrow 2-1 losses against Wolverhampton Wanderers and Aston Villa were followed by a thrilling 3-3 draw away at The Etihad, home of defending champions and favorites Manchester City with their most recent loss coming against another West London outfit, West Ham. The game ended 2-1 in favour of the Hammers.
After that home defeat, Spurs bounced back to win three consecutive games against Newcastle, Forest, and Everton before another setback against Brighton at the AMEX. They have stayed unbeaten in the past two games as of the time of writing and will look forward to this clash with Wolves with a lot of caution.
Chelsea coach Mauricio Pochettino is set to face his former side after enjoying a massive win in the reverse fixture in North London and that will be the confidence the Blues will use to approach this particular fixture. Chelsea have not lost at home to Spurs since 2018 and going by their current form, they will have the advantage.
The epic match at Stamford Bridge in London kicks off on Friday 23rd February 2024, at 8 PM UK time.
Chelsea’s 40,173-capacity stadium will be playing host to this fixture between the two London sides.
Getting tickets for the Chelsea v Tottenham tickets could take a lot of work given the standard of this game. Hence, you are advised to search ticket reselling sites should they be expectedly sold out on each club’s channels.
The Blues have battled injuries all season and their list is not getting cleared up anytime soon. Captain Reece James, Marc Cucurella, and Lesley Ugochukwu are expected to miss this game. However, the likes of Trevor Chalobah, Ben Chilwell, Christopher Nkunku, and Robert Sanchez, have been out in recent weeks, but they should be fully fit for this Man City trip. Meanwhile, Wesley Fofana is still recovering from an ACL injury.
Chelsea XI: Robert Sanchez; Levi Colwill, Chilwell, Reece James; Enzo Fernandez, Moises Caicedo; Cole Palmer, Raheem Sterling, Jackson.
Postecoglou’s Tottenham Hotspur, known for their possession-heavy style of football, will be looking to control the game via the midfield with the experience and solidity of Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg, rejuvenated Bissouma and intelligent Lo Celso pulling the strings. Skipper Son Heung-Min could be as well as midfielder Pape Matar Sarr from their international commitments.
Tottenham: Vicario, Porro, Romero, Van de Ven, Udogie, Bissouma, Hojbjerg, Lo Celso, Kulusevski, Johnson, Richarlison.
Chelsea have been able to secure some fine results since the start of 2024 and they look like a side that can finish the season strongly. On the other hand, Tottenham are enjoying themselves this season, and finishing in the top four looks realistic.
The Blues have been doing well at Stamford Bridge in recent times, so one should expect a fine performance from them.
Chelsea 2-1 Tottenham
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