Tottenham Suffer First Loss in the Premier League this Season
Tottenham needed a win to get back into the top four and continue their chase for the Premier League title. However, they would leave Stamford Bridge with their first loss in the Premier League this season instead.
Today’s match against Chelsea, the most in-form side in the Premier League with six consecutive wins, was always going to be a difficult test for Tottenham.
A good first half showing became a distant memory when the second half kicked off.
Despite leading early in the 11th minute following Christian Eriksen’s long range effort from 18 yards out, Pedro would equalize at the same distance on the stroke of half-time.
To be level at one-all wasn’t a good sign for Spurs. Even though they were the better side in the opening 45 minutes by high-pressing on defense, attacking on offense, maintaining possession and spraying the ball throughout the pitch to get in advantageous positions, all of that effort was squandered by mental errors near the end of the first half.
One of the many issues that seems to plague this Tottenham team is their ability to cause self-inflicted wounds by letting off on the gas pedal and taking things easy after taking an early lead.
That was the case when Chelsea equalized and it continued for the entire second half.
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Antonio Conte expected a tough test from Mauricio Pochettino’s team yesterday during his pre-match press conference, so it was no surprise that they conceded first. After all, Spurs were trying to get back to winning ways after only winning twice in their previous 10 games in all competitions.
That, and never winning at Stamford Bridge in their last 29 attempts is something that continues to eat at and haunt every Spurs team who has traveled to west London over the last 26 years.
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With today’s loss, this streak will continue for another season with Tottenham unable to maintain their pressure on Chelsea.
A draw was possible, but one major defensive error ruined everything.
It was two-fold. One, with Spurs losing possession at the center circle, Chelsea went on a counter on the left flank. This sucked all of the Tottenham defenders towards the middle.
Two, Son Heung-Min who was playing at left wing would be trailing Victor Moses the entire way back but was jogging. Kevin Wimmer, playing out of position as a left-back, would drift inside to help Jan Vertonghen out.
By doing so, Son who knew Moses was being left unmarked didn’t help out on defense. Wimmer who decided to help out Vertonghen, would leave a large chunk of space for Moses to run in and easily score the game-winning goal in the 51st minute.
A kick save by Hugo Lloris would go sideways towards Jan Vertonghen before bouncing backwards off of the Belgian central defender and into the net.
A mental error on Spurs’ defense cost them a vital point.
Earning a draw wouldn’t help matters as they need to turn them into earn wins. But earning a point would have helped. Stopping an in-form Chelsea side from getting a win and snapping their winning streak and clean sheet streak — a span of 601 minutes, or 10 hours — would have been a huge confidence booster.
Unfortunately, what little confidence Spurs might have could be completely gone. Because what this match will eventually remind Spurs, is that they couldn’t play an entire game of football. That, and Antonio Conte managed a perfect second half.
Next: Antonio Conte is Expecting a Tough Match Against Tottenham
The Italian manager opted to have his team sit deeper. While this allowed Spurs freedom to dribble further upfield there would be at least two Chelsea defenders waiting to pounce on a Tottenham player.
The Blues effectively shut Spurs down. Pochettino’s side couldn’t attack like they did in the first half. Instead, they were constantly defending because they would lose possession by forcing passes through the middle or try a hopeful long ball.
To make matters worse, the high-press that served Tottenham well during the opening 45 minutes would be used against them. And when Spurs are being high-pressed, they eventually crumble.