In the long and quite one-sided history of this fixture, Chelsea have a chance to do something this weekend that we’ve never done before: beat Spurs for the seventh consecutive match. (We did lose to Spurs in preseason, in Australia, but that hardly counts.) We’ve won every competitive game since “handshake-gate” between Thomas Tuchel and Antonio Conte at the start of the 2022-23 season, which finished 2-2 at the Bridge.
A lot has changed in the four years since, but let’s hope one thing never changes.
Beyond the history and the rivalry, this is also a great chance to start putting a good run of results together. We’ve won both of our games since the international break, but the next three could really set the tone as winter approaches. After tomorrow’s game, we face Liverpool (in the League Cup), and Manchester United in the next seven days.
So, first up, Spurs.
Date / Time: Saturday, October 24, 17.30 BST; 12:30pm EDT; 10pm IST
Venue: Stamford Bridge, SW6
Referee: Chris Kavanagh (on pitch); John Brooks (VAR)
Forecast: heavy rain
On TV: Sky Sports Main Event (UK); NBCSN, Telemundo (USA); Star Sports Select HD1 (India); SuperSport Premier League, Canal+ Sport 3 (NGA); elsewhere
Streaming: Sky Go (UK); Peacock, Telemundo Deportes En Vivo (USA); JioHotstar (India); DStv Now (NGA)
Chelsea team news: Injuries have started to pile up in the last couple weeks, with Reece James and Emiliano Martínez both going under the knife, the former for a knee problem, the latter for the fractured jaw suffered in last weekend’s game. Realistic prognosis for both would put their earliest returns around Christmastime, despite the “few weeks” being tossed around by club messaging for Emi’s condition. With Martínez down, young Mike “Next Thibaut Courtois” Penders is set to become our youngest ever starting goalkeeper in the Premier League.
Pep Chavarría was a late scratch last weekend and remains out with an unspecified injury. Malo Gusto was also a late scratch, but he’s fine now following a brief illness. Jamie Gittens and Emmanuel Emegha, who’s potentially just a figment of our imagination, remain out.
The good news is that most of the players who have been starting are still healthy and fit. Xabi Alonso made just one change last weekend, Jorrel Hato stepping in for Chavarría (and making a key contribution), with the back-three, the front-three, and the midfield pairing of Moisés Caicedo and Jordan Henderson all solidifying their spots in the lineup. That’s the sort of stability that tends to correlate with consistent results (sorry, Steve-o!).
“We need to have a very complete game. Offensively, defensively, mentality-wise going through difficult moments, as there will be moments for everything. We need to prove again we can continue our run, knowing it’s a special game. We need to play with our head, heart, with intelligence but with passionate energy. We will need many things tomorrow.”
-Xabi Alonso; source: Chelsea FC
Tottenham Hotspur team news: Unlike Chelsea, Spurs have been quite consistent all season. Unfortunately for them, and amusingly for us, that consistency involved not winning. But they do now have their first win of the season, after beating Frank Lampard’s Coventry City on Monday night. They’ll probably put that on the DVD, Frank.
Spurs have had to contend with quite a few injuries throughout their terrible run, but Pedro Porro, Omar Marmoush, Andy Robertson, and Dom Solanke have all been declared fit for tomorrow. James Maddison and Destiny Udogie were not so lucky, while Uncle Tosin faces a late fitness test. He’s barely played since joining Spurs on deadline day — though still more than Mykhailo Mudryk, who’s generally just sat in the stands. Our loanee’s dealing with some sort of fitness issue at the moment as well, perhaps unsurprisingly given that he was out of football for over a year and a half. Lucas Bergvall, Xavi Simons, Wilson Odobert, and Sávio are also out, while Rodrigo Bentancur is suspended following his red card for headbutting Luke Shaw a couple weeks ago.
No team have scored less than Spurs’ six, though they have conceded only ten, which is three fewer than we have. So it’s likely to be another game where if we can keep things together at the back and in the middle, we should have a good chance of adding to their futility.
“I think it’s not just this negative record. There are many, many negative records, but for me it’s one motivation more. For the players, I want this negative record, they give us more motivation, more mentality, more energy to win a game, to play a good game. Because we have the qualities enough to win a game, this game.”
-Roberto De Zerbi; source: Tottenham Hotspur FC
View from the enemy: Cartilage Free Captain
Previously: There are indeed many, many negative records, but there are very few like this. Chelsea have won six in a row against Spurs and 12 of the last 13. Spurs have won just one (1) of their last thirty-four (34!) league games at the Bridge, and one (1) of their last forty-one (41!) visits in any competition (since 1990). Chelsea did the double over Spurs for the third consecutive season last year, winning 1-0 away and 2-1 at home in the final home game of the season.
