Pre Match Analysis - Spurs face Chelsea in Sydney

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Tottenham Hotspur will take on Chelsea on Saturday at the Allianz Stadium in Sydney for the first-ever Blues/Spurs Derby on foreign soil.

Roberto De Zerbi's Spurs will complete their summer down under with their London Rivals after a penalty shootout win over Sydney FC on Wednesday.

Mathys Tel's stunning free kick put Spurs ahead in a game where they dominated for most of the affair before Takahiro Sekine's effort forced the game to penalties.

Victory in Saturday's game will cap off a perfect pre-season for a new-look Spurs side desperate of putting the last two seasons of pain behind them.

Summer signings Andrew Robertson and Sandro Tonali both made appearances for Spurs in the win over Sydney, yet there remain a few question marks on who will turn out on Saturday...

De Zerbi still without full numbers.

The Spurs gaffer is slowly acclimatising to life on White Hart Lane, and while results have been in his favour so far this pre-season, his squad continue to have a few holes needing to be filled.

Spurs fans will be boosted by the news that Midfielder Dejan Kulusevski returned to full training after missing the entirety of the 2025/26 season. The Swede will be far from ready for the Premier League opener with Brentford at the G-Tec, but it shows light at the end of the tunnel for the talisman.

The World Cup contingent will be missing, so the likes of Djed Spence, Pedro Porro and new signing Marcos Senesi will also miss out after being granted extra rest periods by the club.

Unsurprisingly, Club Captain Cristian Romero will also be absent, as the Argentine's relationship with the club continues to be fractious at best.

Jan Paul van-Hecke could make his first appearance in Lilywhite after his £ 52 million transfer from Brighton, with Robertson and Tonali also potentially starting for the first time.

'The Shark Mentality'

De Zerbi has already broken the bank this summer.

The Italian's war chest has already stretched to £237 million this summer, yet there appears to be more room in the purse strings.

Spurs' forward line requires some added firepower. A misfiring Richarlison could head for the exit door, and with Dominic Solanke's injury record continuing to be an issue, Tottenham could be in the market for another striker.

In the aftermath of sealing victory over Sydney the Spurs boss sent a message to the rest of the Premier League: "In the transfer market, when I want one player I become like a shark, no chance to say no!"

Valuable end to Pre-season

Saturday's clash with Chelsea is without doubt a step up from their past opponents in pre-season.

Sydney, Auckland and MK Dons were valuable warm-ups, yet this weekend's game will provide a clearer indication of their progress.

Following the Chelsea test, comes the arrival of Getafe and a double header with Hoffenheim which offer a better measure of De Zerbi's progress.

With Chelsea providing Spurs' toughest pre-season test so far, Saturday's meeting should offer a clearer indication of how De Zerbi's new-look side is shaping up ahead of the Premier League campaign.

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