Chelsea - Tottenham: Hot battle

Having just been defeated by Arsenal just before the FIFA Days break, Chelsea will hope not to be outclassed in their second consecutive London derby when they meet Tottenham at 2am on April 4.

After a period of sublimation on all fronts, Chelsea are showing clear signs of slowing down. "The Blues" are currently in the group of 4 teams with the best results in the Premier League, a ranking that can guarantee them a place in the Champions League next season. However, Chelsea is only five points ahead of Bournemouth in 10th place, meaning that if they stumble a few times in the remaining 9 rounds, the chance of participating in the European Cup will become distant for coach Enzo Maresca and his team.

If the 0-1 defeat to Arsenal 0-1 ended Chelsea's 4-match winning streak before the recent FIFA Days break, Tottenham even suffered 3 defeats in the last 5 away matches, including a 0-2 loss to Fulham in the round 2 weeks ago. Fluctuating form and poor results have left Tottenham stuck in 14th place on the rankings, meaning they no longer have a chance to compete for European Cup tickets from the results in the Premier League.

Having lost 3-4 at home to Chelsea in the first leg last December, if they continue to stumble in the London derby on the morning of April 4, coach Ange Postecoglou's position will be even more shaky, and the Australian coach may even be at risk of losing his job while the season is still unfinished.

Chelsea are not afraid of Tottenham when they face each other at Stamford Bridge. Photo: ChelseaFC

With the current results not as expected, and the past record against Chelsea not being optimistic, Tottenham can only rely on the rise of the players, including the pillars who have fully recovered and are ready to fight. Captain Son Heung-min returned from the bench against Fulham and is likely to start against Chelsea. Along with the Korean striker, James Maddison, Pape Sarr and Wilson Odobert are waiting to be called by coach Postecoglou, while he has to assess the ability to play of Lucas Bergvall, Dejan Kulusevski, Kevin Danso and Richarlison.

Cole Palmer, who scored two penalties in the 4-3 first-leg win, is certain to return alongside Nicolas Jackson and Noni Madueke, with all three having fully recovered from injury. Pedro Neto could move from centre-forward to right-winger, while Christopher Nkunku will have to compete with Jadon Sancho for the left-wing attack.

Tottenham will try to avoid a fourth consecutive defeat to Chelsea while the home team is determined to win all 3 points at Stamford Bridge. "The Blues" are not dreaming because in the last 12 encounters, they have defeated Tottenham 9 times and only lost once. With form being a big problem, Tottenham is not a worthy opponent of Chelsea at the moment.

Source: https://nld.com.vn/chelsea-tottenham-nong-bong-dai-chien-196250402205441369.htm