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Jamie Carragher and Jamie Redknapp were scathing in their criticism of one Tottenham player for a moment of madness during Sunday's 4-3 defeat to Chelsea.

Spurs made the perfect start to the game, capitalising on two mistakes from Marc Cucurella to establish a 2-0 lead after just 11 minutes.

The Blues hit back through Jadon Sancho before Yves Bissouma recklessly flew into a tackle on Moises Caicedo in the penalty area.

The midfielder got none of the ball as Caicedo went tumbling over and the referee did not hesitate to award the stonewall penalty.

Cole Palmer dispatched the spot-kick and his side went on to win the game and move up to second.

And Sky pundits Carragher and Redknapp both agreed that Bissouma's challenge was 'ridiculous'.

Carragher said: 'Some of the things Tottenham players do is absolutely ridiculous. It's a certain penalty. That is absolutely braindead. Who'd be a manager?'

Redknapp added: 'Caicedo when he went central just started to run the game. Bissouma had 27 seconds of madness.

'He's not showing enough pace to get back in there. He dives into a ridiculous tackle. Absolutely ridiculous.'

Redknapp was also critical of Pape Matar Sarr for his foul on Palmer which gave Chelsea a second penalty.

'You know how skilful he [Palmer] is,' he said. That is so clumsy, that is so bad because this was the moment that cost them the game. Ridiculous challenge, you just cost your team,' Redknapp said.

'That's two ill-disciplined [tackles] from your two defensive midfield players.'

Carragher also had some strong words for Spurs manager Ange Postecoglou.

'Unless he makes this team hard to beat, he won't win anything,' the former Liverpool defender added.

'When I hear a manager say, 'we play the same way [no matter what]', it's nonsense, it's absolute rubbish.'

Carragher continued: 'He [Postecoglou] said something in his interview there about how well they played. He said, 'when we're at our best we cause teams problems'.

'I can't imagine any manager I played for for Liverpool, if we conceded four in a game, would say in the interview that we played well.

'I've never been able to get my head around certain managers who say, 'we play a certain way and we will never change'.

'There's this idea, this pure game, the Tottenham fans saying they've got their Tottenham back. You won't win anything. You won't challenge, [or] do anything.

Chelsea entered the Premier League title picture with a bang after coming from two goals down to beat rivals Tottenham on Sunday night.

Dominic Solanke and Dejan Kulusevski fired Spurs into a comfortable lead after just 11 minutes before Jadon Sancho crashed home to halve the deficit.

A rash challenge from Yves Bissouma then awarded the Blues a spot kick and Cole Palmer kept his cool to slot home the equaliser from 12 yards.

The turnaround was complete when Enzo Fernandez thrashed inside the near post before Palmer converted his second penalty of the game with a cheeky Panenka.

There was still time for Son Heung-min to slot home in stoppage time to set up a grandstand finish but it proved too little, too late for Ange Postecoglou's side.

Mail Sport's KIERAN GILL rates the players at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium...

TOTTENHAM (4-3-3)

Fraser Forster – 5

Tried his darnedest to stop Chelsea from getting back into this after he could not reach Sancho's strike, but ultimately, there was no preventing Palmer's two penalties or Fernandez's blast.

Pedro Porro – 5

Never looked comfortable trying to tie down the slippery Sancho, who got away from him for his goal and had his number with a cute pass in the build-up to Chelsea's first penalty.

Cristian Romero – 5

We weren't sure if Romero was going to be fit enough to start and his afternoon lasted less than 15 minutes as he was replaced by Dragusin, injured again.

Micky van de Ven – 5.5

Massive cheer for him on his first start since October, matched only when he produced a proper old-school defender's clearance. But like Romero, he too went off injured.

Destiny Udogie – 5.5

We rarely saw Neto without Udogie, who was auditioning to be his shadow here. It was a healthy battle from start to finish, but in the end, Chelsea were not to be denied their win.

Dejan Kulusevski – 6

Kulusevski's finish as he slid the ball into the bottom-right corner from 20 yards was practically in slow motion, having created the chance by bursting across the box.

Yves Bissouma – 4

If you are going to go sliding in the box, you need to be sure you're getting there first. But Bissouma wiped out Caicedo to concede the penalty scored by Palmer.

Pape Matar Sarr – 4

Recklessness saw him barrel into the back of Palmer in the box to gift Chelsea their second penalty as the 4-3 defeat was confirmed. Postecoglou's players let him down here.

Brennan Johnson – 5

Capitalised on Cucurella's slip to charge forward and cross for Tottenham's opener. But other than that, we never saw the best of Johnson, who was hooked after 53 minutes.

Dominic Solanke – 5.5

Proper striker's play to get across Colwill to make it 1-0, producing a finish that not many would have pulled off. Not enough chances were created for Solanke otherwise.

Heung-min Son – 4.5

Only had Sanchez to beat when it was 2-2 and Chelsea had stopped playing amid some offside confusion, but the captain totally screwed up the chance. Consolation goal in stoppage time.

SUBS

Radu Dragusin (for Romero 15) – 6

Crucial block to stop Jackson from making it 2-2 before the break.

Timo Werner (for Johnson 53) – 5

Had the opportunity to come back to haunt his old club but never did anything with it.

Archie Gray (for Van de Ven 79) – N/A

James Maddison (for Kulusevski 79) – N/A

Lucas Bergvall (for Bissouma 79) – N/A

MANAGER

Ange Postecoglou – 4.5

Tottenham led 2-0, and yet lost 4-3. Postecoglou's tactics will continue to be questioned because his team really should have shown greater control with their two-goal lead.

CHELSEA (4-2-3-1)

Robert Sanchez – 5.5

No stopping Solanke's finish as it flew by him before he could even react, though could have done better with Kulusevski's strike and leaked a Son consolation late on.

Moises Caicedo – 7

Started at right back, but Chelsea's half-time switch saw him move into midfield proper. That saw him advanced enough to win the most obvious penalty you will ever see.

Benoit Badiashile – 6

The odd naive moment from the man tasked with filling in for the injured Wesley Fofana, but overall, Chelsea got away with whatever defensive mishaps they made.

Levi Colwill – 6

He grew up at Chelsea. He knows what this rivalry means to the fans. Could not get to Johnson's cross before Solanke as Tottenham struck first, but victory was his eventually.

Marc Cucurella – 5.5

Both of Tottenham's first-half goals came as a consequence of Cucurella slipping. Remarkable how the Spaniard accidentally helped Spurs until he rage-changed his boots in the 11th minute.

Romeo Lavia – 6.5

Cautioned for hacking down Kulusevski to kill a counter-attack, and then received a drive-by elbow from the Swede, who escaped punishment. Lavia was replaced at half-time in a Maresca reshuffle.

Enzo Fernandez – 8

Partnered Lavia in the first half, then Caicedo in the second half. And then, boom, he pummelled the ball into the bottom corner for 3-2, a lead Chelsea would never lose.

Pedro Neto – 6.5

Tried to sneak the ball into the bottom corner for 2-2 but Forster saw it coming, stretching out a long leg to stop it. Forever an outlet on the right-hand side.

Cole Palmer – 8.5

Cold. Ice cold. He scored one penalty when the pressure was on. Then he won another. What did he do this time? Panenka, of course.

Jadon Sancho – 8

Pinged a strike in off the post from 22 yards after charging inside and gave Porro nightmares as he created chances galore, including before Chelsea's first penalty.

Nicolas Jackson – 6

Gave Dragusin enough time to get back to block his blast when he was played through with only Forster to beat. On this occasion, the headlines belonged to his fellow forwards.

SUBS

Malo Gusto (for Lavia 45) – 6.5

On for Lavia after he had taken a whack to the head, a reshuffle which worked out well for Chelsea.

Christopher Nkunku (for Jackson 76) – N/A

Noni Madueke (for Neto 86) – N/A

Renato Veiga (for Cucurella 90) – N/A

Joao Felix (for Palmer 90) – N/A

MANAGER

Enzo Maresca – 7

Chelsea fans love him, as shown by how they were singing his name at full-time. They trailed 2-0 after Cucurella's slips, but came back. Title contenders? Why not?

REFEREE

Anthony Taylor – 6

Chelsea fans are not fond of Taylor but he gave them two penalties here – helped that they were two obvious ones to give!

Tottenham fans launched missiles at Chelsea stars Cole Palmer and Enzo Fernandez during a fierce London derby.

Both Cole Palmer and Enzo Fernandez were forced to delay taking corners as pieces of card were thrown in their direction in the first half.

Tottenham stewards intervened to calm the fans down and entered the pitch to remove the objects.

Jamie Carragher said on Sky Sports: 'Where are the people in the stands, the stewards? Don't just stand there watching, get in there.

'What are these Tottenham stewards doing? There's three of them behind Cole Palmer just stood there watching him.'

The objects thrown at the Chelsea players is believed to have come from a tifo used just before kick-off.

The situation became worse towards the end of the half when the game had to be halted momentarily as fans continued to throw objects.

The Chelsea star appeared to laugh off the incidents and continued with the action.

Tottenham fans have a history of throwing objects at Chelsea players as Antonio Rudiger fell victim to it back in 2022.

Rudiger appeared to make the referee aware that a object was thrown in his direction by Spurs fans behind the goal he was defending, with the object understood to have been a firelighter.

Meanwhile, Palmer and Fernandez both came back to haunt Tottenham fans as they scored as Chelsea claimed a 4-3 win.

Palmer scored two penalties, with one of them coming via a paneka in the closing stages of the match.

Follow Mail Sport's live blog for the latest score, team news and updates as Chelsea travel to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium to take on Tottenham in Premier League action.

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Tottenham have tended to reserve their very best performances for the other big teams in the Premier League.

Already this season, Manchester rivals United and City have been vanquished by Ange Postecoglou's side, while they showed a lot of resolve when going down 1-0 to Arsenal in September.

Though one could argue that their sternest test yet will come on Sunday when they welcome Enzo Maresca's rejuvenated and bullish young side to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. And following a demoralising defeat by Bournemouth on Thursday night, Postecoglou will be desperate to see a reaction from his troops.

The depth Tottenham fans' anger towards the Australian was on full display at the Vitality Stadium when the former Celtic manager became embroiled in a heated exchange with his own supporters. Last term, a thrilling and often bizarre edition of this fixture marked the end of Postecoglou's honeymoon, with goals from Nicolas Jackson and Cole Palmer downing a depleted Spurs.

Another loss in that vein could spell the end of the Postcoglou era all together. This time around the home outfit will be without the likes of Micky van de Ven, Christian Romero and Guglielmo Vicario and their absence from the matchday squad excludes them from consideration from a combined XI with Sunday's opponents.

But which other Spurs stars have shown enough this season to force their way into a starting line up comprising of stars from the London rivals?

Filip Jorgensen

Yes, Enzo Maresca defiantly claimed that the only player in his squad sure to start against Tottenham will be Robert Sanchez but I can't deny what I see with my own eyes. One of his goalkeeping options is a 22-year-old, increasingly reliable, shot stopper and the other is Robert Sanchez.

In fairness to the Spaniard, his form has marginally improved of late but Jorgensen surely deserves a run in the team after his impressive performance in the Conference League. This point also requires qualification because are competing in a competition they have no right to be in. But against Heidenheim, one of the favourites for the trophy, The Dane proved his quality with some outstanding stops.

He was also given the nod by Maresca in their emphatic 5-1 win over Southampton on Wednesday night as the Chelsea boss finally rewarded some of his European squad with a taste of Premier League action.

Had Vicario been fit he would have given Jorgensen a run for his money but the former Villarreal stopper is well worth an inclusion in this squad. Maresca ought to promote him to No 1 already.

Malo Gusto

Chelsea skipper Reece James has only made four appearances for the Blues this season but the reason no one is really concerned is because of the development of Gusto.

Brought in from Lyon for £26million last January, the 21-year-old has turned skeptics into believers with a string of impressive performances at the back for the west London outfit.

The French international's displays even prompted Maresca to play James in an unfamiliar left-back to ensure that Gusto continued in his preferred position. Tottenham's Pedro Porro makes a decent claim to be included but the Spaniard lacks the completeness that is found in Gusto's game.

Levi Colwill

'I would be scared to play against us,' Colwill boldly stated ahead of Chelsea's clash against Aston Villa. It was a claim that looked sure to backfire at the earliest opportunity but the two matches that have followed have proved the 21-year-old right.

Maresca's side have only lost two games this season; at home to Manchester City on the opening day and away to Liverpool. And they are the league's highest scorers and boast its joint-fourth best defence.

Colwill can take particular credit for the last point, as his partnership with the now injured Wesley Fofana providing the side the perfect platform to build on. The defender is far from the finished product, nor should he be at his tender age. But he is gradually maturing in a fine centre back who could anchor defences for club and country for many years to come.

Radu Dragusin

Fortunate to get the nod due to the absences of the aforementioned Fofana, Van de Ven and Romero, Dragusin has nonetheless done okay for Postecoglou's side.

Admittedly, that is not the most glowing appraisal of his performances, perhaps the point is better explained by saying that the Romanian has shown that he is not responsible for Tottenham's failings.

The 22-year-old has played all 90 minutes in each of Spurs' last four matches, games that include big wins over Aston Villa and Manchester City. However, he was similarly involved as the side failed to beat Fulham and lost at home to Ipswich.

Still, he has deputised well in the absence of Tottenham's first-choice pairing and may even be able to make a case to keep his place when Postecoglou has a fully-fit squad, that's if he can keep improving.

Marc Cucurella

Marc Cucurella might be the best left-back in the Premier League right now. Few players change minds after being brandished a flop but thanks to his exploits with his country and domestic performances, the 26-year-old is starting to get the recognition he deserves.

The former Brighton star has featured in all of Chelsea's league fixtures this term, save for their 2-1 defeat at Anfield and he has done a better job than any defender martialing Arsenal's Bukayo Saka.

Another well-rounded Blues defender, Cucurella is in the form of his life and showing no signs of slowing down.

Moises Caicedo

Few players change minds after being brandished a flop and that statement hold greater weight for the Colombian than even his team-mate above. At the centre of well-publicised tug-of-war last season, Caicedo eventually completed a £115million move to Stamford Bridge and it's fair to say, collapsed under the weight of expectation.

Things did improve for the 23-year-old as the season went on but now with 2023-24 firmly in the rear-view mirror, Caicedo is finally showing Chelsea fans what their club paid for. Caicedo has been ever present for Maresca in the league this year, while zero Conference League minutes show he is just as important to the Chelsea boss as Cole Palmer.

The combative midfielder has even started to add goal contributions to his game, with him currently having one goal and two assists to his name from 14 games, which is just one assist shy of what he managed during the entirety of last season.

Enzo Fernandez

Chelsea spent big on the midfield pairing they have been running with in recent weeks and they are finally starting to convince in tandem. Fernandez has had to bide his time in the Conference League squad for the first couple of months of the season as Romeo Lavia impressed, but the youngsters injury has opened the door to the Argentinian and he has responded with some of his best performances in a Chelsea shirt.

The 23-year-old appears to finally be liberated of the pressure that came with his big-money signing almost two years ago and the emergence of Cole Palmer has removed the pressure to provide match-winning contributions.

Fernandez has started each of Chelsea's last three games as captain and has five goal contributions in his last four Premier League matches for the club.

His return to form has given Maresca a selection headache but its one the Italian will be thrilled to try and figure out.

Cole Palmer

It's fair to say that this has been a slightly more testing campaign for the reigning PFA Young Player of the Year, as Premier League defences have focused even more of their attention on stopping the 22-year-old.

And he is forced to perform under the weight of expectation his remarkable debut campaign in Stamford Bridge produced. Despite that, Palmer still has nine goals and six assists from 14 league games.

He has every chance of bettering improving on his number last term and in a more complete Blues roster, who knows how far that could take them?

Son Heung-min

The Tottenham skipper may not be the vintage version of himself anymore but he remains a danger in and around the area. The 32-year-old has a decent return of three goals and four assists from his 10 Premier League matches, which, when compared to the likes of Mo Salah and Bukayo Saka, does not appear to be overly impressive but given his age, his contribution has been valuable.

Son has chipped in with vital moments in recent Spurs wins against City and Villa but he has been forced to play down the middle of late with the injury to Dominic Solanke.

Back in his preferred left wing position, Son still has plenty to offer this Tottenham team.

Dejan Kulusevski

The Swedish winger has arguably been Tottenham's best player this season and has shown a previously unseen versatility that has aided his side during their injury problems.

Kulusevski may only have two goals and three assists from his 14 Premier League appearances but a lot of his best work is done before the ball hits the back of the net or the final pass is made.

The 24-year-old is an exceptional ball carrier and, like many of his team-mates, has reserved his best displays for the big boys of the division.

Nicolas Jackson

The 23-year-old is the third Chelsea player on this list to have radically altered public perception in the last few months. In fairness to Jackson, his performances have tended upwards for some time now, with a positive run at the end of the last campaign seeing him end an impressive debut season with 14 goals.

This term he has already netted eight times in the Premier League and he has provided three assists for the Blues who are the league's top scorers.

Jackson's form and relationship with talisman Palmer has been so impressive that Maresca has been unable to bring in Christian Nkunku who is actually the club's top scorer thanks to his exploits in the Conference League.

The Senegalese bagged one of the least impressive hat-tricks in this fixture last season. His transformation above all has been a sight to behold.

Tottenham have beaten big clubs this season, but have slipped up in other games

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Trying to make sense of Tottenham is, and always has been, an impossible task. For starters, consider this: ahead of this weekend, only Liverpool and Chelsea had scored more goals than Ange Postecoglou’s side. Only Liverpool and Arsenal had conceded fewer. Only those three teams boasted a better goal difference. They sat first, second and third in the Premier League table.

Tottenham, meanwhile, are in 11th place.

A 4-0 win at Manchester City. Another convincing victory at Old Trafford. Thumping 4-1 wins over Aston Villa and West Ham.

And yet they’ve also had a 1-0 defeat at Crystal Palace. Another, this week, at Bournemouth. A draw at home to Fulham. A 2-1 defeat at home to Ipswich, the Tractor Boys’ first top-flight win in 22 years.

No wonder Postecoglou looks like a broken man. No wonder the fans are angry.

But how? Why can Tottenham beat the big clubs but get turned over by those they should beat other than just shrugging your shoulders and saying, ‘Well, it’s just Tottenham, innit…’

TOTTENHAM REALLY ARE NOT A POSSESSION TEAM

Postecoglou wants his teams to play out from the back. In this column recently, Mail Sport revealed how Tottenham play the shortest goal-kicks of all teams in the division.

Only Manchester City have had more possession this season. The problem is... Tottenham still aren’t a possession team. They are still at their best when they don’t have the ball. Their nine goals from counter-attacks is the most of any side this season.

Of the seven games this term in which they enjoyed most of the ball, Tottenham have won once, against Everton. They lost five of the others and drew against Leicester, and they nearly lost that. Four points.

Of the seven games where they have had the least of it, it’s five wins, a draw and only one defeat. Sixteen points.

His side are packed with pacy wingers who love to spring forward on the break. They don’t have that many midfielders who can pick a lock from deep with the ball at their feet.

On the list of midfielders with the most passes into the final third before this weekend, the first Tottenham name to appear is James Maddison in 16th, with players from 14 different clubs above him.

AWAY DAY BLUES

Those big wins at the Etihad and Old Trafford are the exceptions to the rule under Postecoglou.

Ange’s side have lost eight of their last 12 league games on the road but their struggles stretch far beyond that.

Throughout his entire reign at Spurs, he’s won 65 per cent of his home Premier League games and only 35 per cent of his away games.

Across the 26 home league games in Ange’s tenure, Spurs have taken 151 more shots than their opponents with a goal difference of +21. On the road, over the same number of games, they have only had two more shots than their opponents and scored just five more goals.

For a team who thrive on the counter, despite how much their manager wants them to keep the ball, struggling on the road goes against the usual theory that home sides will come at you more and allow you to hit them on the break.

In fact, home teams allow Tottenham more of the ball than when they’re on their own turf.

Spurs have more passes on the road but fewer in the final third. They have more of the ball but create fewer chances and have fewer shots and have fewer touches in the box.

They allow their opponents far more chances than at home, too, especially down their right flank.

Only three teams lose possession more often in their own third away from home than Spurs, and, under Postecoglou, Tottenham’s opponents have had more than double the number of shots after winning the ball high up the pitch — and more than three times as many of their shots end up in the Spurs net.

You can’t press if you have the ball. But you can be pressed.

‘We’ve again allowed a game of football to get away from us, and a lot of it is self-inflicted,’ said Postecoglou after the Bournemouth defeat. ‘We don’t do ourselves any favours by allowing the opposition to play the game they want to.’

That leads to mistakes. This season, Tottenham have made almost twice as many errors leading to shots in away games than at home but, crucially, all seven of those mistakes on the road have been inside their own box.

You cannot make mistakes like that and not, eventually, pay the price.

NO FIGHT WHEN IT GETS TIGHT

To accuse Tottenham of not having the stomach for the fight when things get tough is a bit of a lazy cliche these days but the facts this season are as follows: when Spurs win, they win big. When they don’t win big, they often lose.

Take their six league victories this season. Two by four goals, three by three goals and one by two. All six of their defeats have come by a single goal.

Postecoglou admits his squad lack ‘leadership and maturity’. Only two of Tottenham’s outfielders are over 30. Only six of them have played more than 100 Premier League games. Arsenal’s squad has 13 outfielders in the 100 club. Manchester City have 12.

Meanwhile, three of the four players signed by Daniel Levy in the summer were teenagers.

SHEETS ARE TOO DIRTY

Spurs don’t concede many but they don’t win the tight games because they don’t keep enough clean sheets. Just one in their last 22 home league games, a streak running back to November last year. Since then, no side in England’s top four tiers have fewer home clean sheets than Tottenham.

Tottenham have now fallen behind 13 times at home in 2024, one shy of a Premier League record for a calendar year.

At least when they concede at home, it’s not the end of things. It actually sparks something. Spurs have gained nine points from losing positions at home this season. Away from home, zero. When they go behind on the road, as they did at Bournemouth, it’s curtains.

For once, it’s not all to do with set-pieces. For all the talk of Tottenham’s Achilles’ heel, they’ve only conceded three goals from corners this season. That’s the same as set-piece kings Arsenal.

ARE THEY KNACKERED?

Tottenham looked spent at Bournemouth on Thursday night.

Eight of Postecoglou’s squad have played more than 900 league minutes this season; ahead of the weekend only Newcastle had more. There’s plenty of other teams on eight but none play as intensely as Postecoglou wants his Spurs side to compete.

No team sprinted more than Tottenham over the first 14 games. Only the Cherries covered more distance. No side have won more possession in the final third than Spurs.

Of those players with more than 900 league minutes, Tottenham were the only team with two players in the top five for distance covered per 90 minutes: Dejan Kulusevski and Dominic Solanke.

No one has applied more pressure on their opponents this season than Solanke. No wonder he dropped to his knees after Spurs knocked City out of the Carabao Cup.

No wonder, too, that Tottenham are struggling with injuries. Postecoglou is without first-choice centre backs Micky van de Ven and Cristian Romero and is now without Ben Davies as well.

For a team who play at full tilt, it’s putting the squad, performances and, crucially, results under strain.

Enzo Maresca insists Chelsea are not favourites to beat Tottenham, despite some Spurs supporters claiming on radio phone-ins they are tempted to stay away from Sunday's London derby out of fear of a humiliating spanking.

Ange Postecoglou’s team find themselves in a tough moment, two weeks on from their 4-0 beating of Manchester City.

‘First of all, the fans are going to be there, no doubt,’ Maresca said. ‘And second, we are not favourite, absolutely not. ‘They are playing European competition, like us, we are there. But not because we are second in the table, we are favourite, absolutely not.’

Like Chelsea now, Tottenham were briefly talked up as Premier League title contenders last season under Postecoglou, but Maresca says he is not using Spurs’ sudden struggle as a lesson to be learned.

‘I don’t think we need Ange’s experience or Tottenham’s experience to understand things can change quick,’ he said. ‘Every season in football, in England, in Spain, in Italy, every country, things can change quick.’

Chelsea's loathing for their crosstown rivals is so strong some fans use their 55-year-old walk-on anthem as a vessel for bashing, regardless of the fixture

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Liquidator is a 1969 reggae track with Hammond organ crescendos so rousing that the Jamaican record producer Harry J figured no vocals were necessary. Clearly, that is not an opinion shared by the thousands at Stamford Bridge who have taken to weaponising the instrumental chorus with their own lyrics.

‘We hate Tottenham! Chelsea!’ Hatred for them, love for us, in that order before each and every game, whoever the opponent. Not all Chelsea fans are fond of their 55-year-old walk-on anthem being used as a vessel for bashing, insisting you can loathe that lot without spoiling our song, but it serves as a regular reminder of this rivalry’s standing.

The Tottenham Hotspur Stadium DJ will not encourage Chelsea's away end by throwing Liquidator into Sunday's pre-match playlist, no petrol needed on this fire after a history so venomously colourful it involves meat hooks and electrified fencing as well as the odd classic scoreline.

In search of its origins, before there was even a flicker of a feud, Mail Sport was told to look back to the 1967 FA Cup final – or the ‘Cockney Cup final’ as it was christened as the first all-London affair. Two of Chelsea’s own in Jimmy Greaves and Terry Venables starred for their victorious opponents. Tottenham had been winning trophies when they weren’t. Bitterness was brewing, so say the historians.

We phoned John Boyle for verification. He’s 77 years young today, but was 20 when he started for Chelsea that day in front of 100,000 fans at Wembley Stadium. Surprisingly, he said there was no ill will. ‘I don’t think there was,’ Boyle told us. ‘I never saw any trouble. It started after that. Tottenham, Arsenal, West Ham, all the London teams, I don’t know if there was a big difference at the time. I never thought there was a rivalry with Spurs back then.’

The columnists concurred as Wembley was a serene scene, with the former Daily Express sportswriter Desmond Hackett commenting on his dispatch: ‘I enthused that this would be a joyous, knees-up, knocked-'em-in-the-Old-King's-Road affair. Unhappily, Tottenham's 2-1 win over Chelsea was as sedate as a tea party at Buckingham Palace, apart from the lamentable fact that the Queen did not attend.’ However, Boyle did add: ‘Although the ’67 final was hard to take for the fans.’

That frustration may be why the next time they met, in the First Division at White Hart Lane in November 1967, dozens were arrested during crowd disturbances. One chap was nicked for hiding a meat hook, another for concealing a sandbag, a third for carrying a metal cosh.

Similar stories cropped up from then on as English football entered an early era of hooliganism. March 1969, a 1-0 win for Tottenham with Notting Hill Gate and Earls Court among the London underground stations trashed by supporters who also slashed seats on carriages. October 1972, a 1-0 victory for Chelsea in which troublemakers tossed fireworks at one another from the terraces.

Boyle suggested we look further forward, to once he had left Chelsea in 1973. Inevitably that took us to April 1975, a game in which both sides knew their First Divisions statuses depended as the newspapers said the losers would take a walk down ‘death row’. Eddie McCreadie was only two days into the job as Blues boss when he selected an 18-year-old called Ray Wilkins as captain, axing a legend in John Hollins.

The atmosphere at White Hart Lane was animalistic. Kick-off was delayed as supporters spilled on to the pitch in scraps. Pat Jennings was kicked in the shin by one intruder, but the Tottenham goalkeeper gave his assailant a booting back and the young fan limped away feeling like he had received the goal-kick treatment.

While Chelsea’s current ownership hope their faith in youth is rewarded on Sunday, McCreadie was not. His team lost 2-0. Tottenham survived on 34 points. Chelsea dropped down to the Second Division on 33. Even younger than Wilkins that day was Teddy Maybank, handed his Chelsea debut at the age of 18. Today he is 68, and Mail Sport’s next phone call after Boyle.

‘It was tremendously violent,’ Maybank told us. ‘When we got there, it was like something out of a different world, horrendous. It was lethal, not a nice place to be. In the dressing room, we heard it all kicking off and we didn’t even want to go out to have a look.’

Boyle had to pop out to hand his parents their tickets. Thankfully as a teenage debutant, he could ghost through the war zone without being recognised. ‘It was the scariest moment of my life,’ he continued. ‘You’ll always remember it. Always. It sticks with you, the aggression. Whoever lost that game was relegated. The tension was ridiculous. It’s a shame I didn’t have enough experience to go out and play with a free head.’

And yet, Boyle added he would go through it all over again, because this is the game you live for. Arsenal, Fulham, Crystal Palace, West Ham, Brentford, they’re all closer to Chelsea in SW6 than Tottenham in N17. But it means more than mere geography. Safe to say, then, the rivalry was alive and, certainly in Jennings’ case, kicking in 1975? ‘Definitely,’ Boyle said. ‘Without a doubt. For them to send us down, that hurt, really hurt.’

There are too many memorable matches to mention between then and now, plus a forest full of paperwork filed by coppers patrolling Fulham Road and that mile-long march to Seven Sisters, with the National Front infiltration into Chelsea's fanbase adding to the aggro.

In April 1985, a 12ft-high anti-hooligan electrified fence was erected at Stamford Bridge before the visit of Tottenham, though Greater London Council banned the barbed pitch perimeter from zapping anyone tempted to try to invade. Another story from New Year’s Day in 1986 goes that a few Chelsea fans’ knuckles were still too clean for their liking when their morning match with West Ham at Upton Park was postponed because of a frozen pitch, so they travelled to Highbury instead to liven up Tottenham’s goalless draw at Arsenal.

There was Chelsea’s 6-1 Premier League win at White Hart Lane in December 1997 in which Tore Andre Flo scored a hat-trick. Dennis Wise featured that day and word is he would take it upon himself to teach foreign imports the importance of winning these derbies.

There was Tottenham’s 5-1 League Cup semi-final second-leg victory at the same venue in January 2002, completing a turnaround after the first leg was marred by missile throwing, including coins aimed at Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink.

It was in the same competition in February 2008 that Spurs secured their last trophy, Chelsea’s cabinet since crammed via the wallet of Roman Abramovich, who might have opted to buy their rivals were it not for Sven-Goran Eriksson advising him to choose blue over white. Abramovich became attuned to the animosity, Carlton Cole claiming his transfer was cancelled when the Russian informed him: ‘You can’t go to Spurs, I don’t do business with them.’

The Battle of the Bridge came in May 2016, a 2-2 draw which confirmed Claudio Ranieri’s Leicester as 5,000-1 champions. Mark Clattenburg told Mail Sport that was ‘by far the hardest match I have ever refereed’, adding: ‘There was so much at stake and you could sense the tension. There would have been few complaints if I had sent off four players that night but equally I could have been accused of ruining what was a great game. I don't think I could have won.’

There was Tottenham's 3-1 Premier League win in April 2018, their first at Stamford Bridge in 28 years after being the gift that kept on giving for too long. Then Chelsea’s 4-1 victory last season when Ange Postecoglou’s high line acted as a noose around the team’s neck, beautifully bonkers though it was for neutrals. Not even that scoreline earned Mauricio Pochettino forgiveness from the Chelsea fans who hated the Tottenham blood in his veins.

You need to be special to be universally loved, and Greaves was that, a scorer of 132 goals in 169 games for Chelsea and 266 in 379 for Tottenham.

Some years ago, Stamford Bridge officials added one of his quotes to a wall in the home dressing room, reading: ‘It’s probably the greatest name in the world: Chelsea. You think about it. It conjures up the best part of the biggest city in the world.’ He was adored, Greavsie, with the two teams’ supporters setting aside their hatred before their meeting in September 2021 to mark his passing at the age of 81. Among those present to pay tribute were Micky Hazard, Graham Roberts and Glenn Hoddle, three men who also represented these two rivals.

And now for the next instalment. Tottenham may remind us how their true enemies are Arsenal. Some at Chelsea may claim they find Liverpool more loathsome, and certainly the away end in Southampton on Wednesday went through their full repertoire of songs reserved for their Scouse foes.

But there will be no love lost on Sunday. Not before, not during, not after. History, and the lyrics inserted into Liquidator, tells us so.

The shadow of Chelsea’s last trip to Tottenham loomed as Ange Postecoglou fielded questions about misfiring form and urged fans to hold their nerve.

That 4-1 defeat in November 2023 was his first as Spurs boss. The Ange Ball revolution was ablaze on a wild night in north London as he refused to yield his high-line principles, despite two red cards and two key injuries.

His sheer b*llsy intent was celebrated by fans convinced their club had recaptured its soul and yet the Blues make the same journey across the capital on Sunday amid evidence that patience might be wearing thin in N17 after some faltering results.

‘That will be dependent on what people see, what people feel,’ said Postecoglou on the question of his bond with supporters. ‘The only way I can affect that is by what we produce on game days.’

And it felt as if he had Mikel Arteta’s haphazard first phase as Arsenal boss in mind when he said: ‘If you stick to a plan and get through difficult moments when there’s dissension among supporters, you forget about that when you’re on the other side. It’s about winning but it’s about belief as well. You look beyond the results. That’s what happened at the start of my tenure. We lost against Chelsea but there was a sense we were building something. Obviously, it kind of went off the rails after that game. It’s not just about winning, but where we are right now it will certainly help.’

Spurs have lost as many as they have won in the Premier League since that Chelsea defeat. They sit 10th after Thursday’s 1-0 defeat at Bournemouth, which was flattering and prompted fans in the away end to turn on Postecoglou when he crossed the pitch to hear what they wanted to get off their chests.

‘Maybe people thought it wasn’t the right thing to do,’ said Postecoglou. ‘My wife certainly didn’t, so I got some feedback there as well. But that’s OK. I’m not going to change. It’s who I am. I’ve been like that my whole career and I won’t change.

‘It’s on me and whatever you’ve got to direct, direct it at me. And I’m listening. I’m listening, I’m looking, I’m understanding.’

Only a fortnight earlier, the away end had been rapturous as Spurs beat Manchester City 4-0 at the Etihad Stadium. They won 3-0 at Manchester United this season. They put four past Aston Villa, Everton and West Ham.

‘When we’ve won we’ve been compelling,’ said Postecoglou. ‘It’s not been struggling victories. Just about every game we’ve won we’ve been very, very dominant and the team we want to be but that gets diminished by performances like the one at Bournemouth.’

Yet the summer transfer strategy combined with a long casualty list leaves the squad looking callow, and short of natural leaders.

From this perspective it seems remiss to have encouraged Eric Dier, Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg and Emerson Royal to leave. Not only did they offer experience but defensive instinct, something else Spurs lack until you realise Postecoglou recoils against cautious, safety-first football.

He wants defenders squeezing out to win the ball in midfield. He wants midfielders pressing in step with the forwards. He does not want anybody dropping deep to mop up danger. Instead, they must be quick to recover or cynical enough to stop counter-attacking moves at source.

‘We can’t change if I keep everyone,’ said Postecoglou. ‘I can’t just keep adding to the squad and I couldn’t let a 28-year-old go and sign a 28-year-old because that wasn’t where we were at. We had to sign younger players and start building. If I was worried about my own existence, I’d have fought tooth and nail to block Harry Kane leaving but it wasn’t the right decision for the club because he was in the last year of his contract. The decisions we made around signing young players are the right decisions for this club for where we are at right now and they will bear fruit.’

Still, two weeks into a five-week cycle of Thursday-Sunday fixtures and the squad looks desperately thin. Cristian Romero could return against Chelsea as Ben Davies joins three others with hamstring injuries.

There is, however, little scope to wriggle with selection or make changes from the bench — vital in a high-tempo style and with five subs available and in stark contrast to the wealth of options at Enzo Maresca’s disposal.

Chelsea will have had a day’s more rest than Spurs for this one. Maresca rested half his first team and coasted past 10-man Southampton on Wednesday.

Postecoglou does not have that luxury, and he goes straight from a London derby into the hostility of Rangers at Ibrox in the Europa League, before a trip to Southampton and home games against Manchester United, in the Carabao Cup, and Liverpool.

It is a brutal schedule for a team on their knees and a manager fighting to persuade the world it will all be fine in the end.

The euphoria of Manchester City already seems like a long time ago for Ange Postecoglou.

Twelve days since the four-goal romp at the home of the champions have brought him problems and setbacks at every turn like an advent calendar from hell.

Injuries and illnesses have stacked against him and three fixtures in eight days have brought him no wins.

Equalisers were conceded at home against Roma and Fulham and his depleted side did not deserve anything at Bournemouth, who climbed above them in the table.

Fans in the away booed the Spurs boss after the final whistle and his team looked flat and tired and copped another injury with Ben Davies limping off in the second half after pulling a hamstring.

They were also fortunate not to concede more than the one goal scored in the first half by teenager centre-half Dean Huijsen.

Marcus Tavernier and Dango Outtara missed the target with glorious chances to make it 2-0 in the closing minutes. Fraser Forster stood firm to save from Enes Unal and substitute Lucas Bergvall blocked from Tyler Adams.

That brilliant 4-0 win at City is the outlier for Postecoglou.

It is the only win in six games in all competitions, with in-form Chelsea visiting on Sunday with an extra day of rest in the tank and a much stronger squad to select from.

Spurs arrived missing seven through injury and suspension, but Dominic Solanke was back after illness to start against the club he left in the summer and Archie Gray shook off the dead leg he picked up in Sunday’s draw with Fulham to make his first Premier League start.

Gray came in to give Pedro Porro a breather but ended up in central defence.

Tottenham though started well enough. Dejan Kulusevski had the first effort of the game, firing straight at Kepa Arrizabalaga after good work by James Maddison, who made a positive start, finding time and space in midfield as the visitors settled quickest and dominated the opening phase.

Maddison released Solanke, who fired over under pressure from Huijsen, the 19-year-old defender deputising for Marcos Senesi and who became Bournemouth’s youngest Premier League goal scorer when he opened the scoring in the 17th minute.

Forster made a block at his near post to deny Evanilson as Bournemouth’s first genuine attack of the game ended with a ricochet in the penalty box falling kindly for the Brazilian via Radu Dragusin and Destiny Udogie.

From the corner that followed, Huijsen wriggled free with a simple run around the back of the crowd and arrived unmarked to plant a firm downward header past Forster from Tavernier’s expert dead-ball delivery.

Tottenham’s vulnerability from set-pieces became a theme throughout last season. It drew much criticism to the annoyance of Postecoglou. They have been more solid this season in general, but they conceded a late equaliser from the second phase of a corner last week against Roma.

Now this, and it seemed to drain some of their confidence. Suddenly, the crisp passing patterns of appeared more difficult to stitch together and Bournemouth became more assertive on the ball and the contest more even.

Tavernier had the ball in the net but had strayed a yard offside before the pass by Evanilson and Forster made a vital save just before the interval.

Milos Kerkez overlapping on the left found Tavernier and his glancing header looked to be destined for the net when the Spurs keeper, making his third appearance in a row since Guglielmo Vicario broke an ankle, reacted quickly and saved low with his left hand.

Postecoglou resisted the urge to make changes at half time and the pattern remained the same. Spurs took risks going forward and Bournemouth were always dangerous on the turnover, breaking at pace into wide open areas.

Kluivert sprinted clear of Udogie as they counterattacked from a Spurs corner but was unable to find a way past Forster from an angle, and a square pass to Evanilson might have been the better option.

Son supplied a brief boost when came on, full of purpose to replace Pape Matar Sarr. And Tottenham had a better balance with Johnson switched back to the right as part of the reshuffle.

Son found the net within seconds, tapping in a rebound as Kepa saved from Kulusevski but the flag went straight up and it was the right call.

Davies was forced off on his 300th Premier League appearance with what seemed to be a hamstring injury, leaving Spurs short of three central defenders. Gray moved alongside Dragusin and Porro came on and tested Kepa with a sweet strike but there were chances at both ends as the game ripped open.

Maddison went close, Forster saved from Evanilson and Ryan Christie clipped the outside of a post.

Forster saved his own blushes with a save after a careless pass was stolen by Adams. Evanilson put the rebound into the net but was offside and was denied by a VAR intervention. Ultimately, it did not matter.