Five keys to Tottenham beating Chelsea in the Premier League

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LONDON, ENGLAND - JANUARY 12: Antonio Conte, Manager of Tottenham Hotspur gestures during the Carabao Cup Semi Final Second Leg match between Tottenham Hotspur and Chelsea at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on January 12, 2022 in London, England. (Photo by Shaun Botterill/Getty Images)

LONDON, ENGLAND – JANUARY 12: Antonio Conte, gestures during the Carabao Cup Semi-Final Second Leg match between Tottenham Hotspur and Chelsea at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on January 12, 2022, in London, England. (Photo by Shaun Botterill/Getty Images) /

For Tottenham Hotspur to beat Chelsea for the first time since 2018 in the Premier League, Spurs will have to do several things well, here are five keys to that success.

In their last 10 matches against Chelsea, Spurs only have one victory – a 6-5 shootout win over the Blues in the last season’s Carabao Cup. Spurs were able to follow up that September 2020 triumph with a draw a couple of months later in the league but that is it. A shoot-out win and a draw are the only positive results for Tottenham.

Some of the games have been close and others not so much and all have ended the same way, with Chelsea winning at Spurs’ expense. Prior to these last 10 matches, Tottenham actually won three straight against Chelsea and had seemed to close the gap. However, that last win, a 1-0 first-leg Carabao Cup victory was not enough to carry the tie, as Spurs fell on penalties and the Blues haven’t looked back.

As Tottenham has stuttered over the last several seasons, Chelsea has won the Champions League and UEFA Super Cup. Now Chelsea is in the Carabao Cup finals at Tottenham’s expense, Having lost twice in the last two weeks to Chelsea, maybe it seems like they have Spurs number but a good game plan and a strong effort can help Spurs win the day. Here are five keys to Spurs beating the Blues on Sunday at Stamford Bridge.

SOUTHAMPTON, ENGLAND – DECEMBER 28: Eric Dier of Tottenham Hotspur during the Premier League match between Southampton and Tottenham Hotspur at St Mary’s Stadium on December 28, 2021, in Southampton, England. (Photo by Visionhaus/Getty Images) /

Tottenham key one at Chelsea – Don’t beat yourself

If we look at the three goals Chelsea scored over the two legs of the Carabao Cup, they were more a result of Tottenham errors than they were of anything special Chelsea did. Even the two goals conceded midweek against Leicester City came as much from Spurs not getting things done right as the Foxes making plays.

The point is, it is difficult to win when you concede good goals, let alone give goals away against good teams. For Tottenham to end their skid against Chelsea, Spurs must not give away any cheap goals.

The most positive thing for Tottenham heading into this match is that they should have something they did not against Chelsea earlier in the month, which is Eric Dier in the middle of the defence. Dier is not the second coming but he does provide good leadership and the errors typically go down with him on the pitch as a result.