Tottenham Hotspur battled a rough and ready Chelsea team all day but left Stamford Bridge with a hard-earned point; here is how Spurs’ players rated.
Rating Tottenham Forwards versus Chelsea
It was a quiet first half from Spurs’ talented trio up front, as the Chelsea defensive pressure made it difficult for Tottenham to get anything going. However, Spurs’ front kept battling and, in the end, helped steal a point at the Bridge.
Centre Forward – Harry Kane – 6.5
Outside a quick restart after picking up a foul in his own half, Kane was a non-factor in the first half as he struggled to find space. Kane looked bright at the start of the second half, finding a little space and room to share the ball. The talisman had a wonderful look at the goal just past the hour mark but pulled his shot wide. It looked like Kane and Spurs would rue the lost opportunity until Kane headed in the equalizer in the fifth minute of injury time.
Left-forward – Heung-Min Son – 5
Reece James tracked Heung-min Son all over the pitch in the first half, impacting the South Korean’s effectiveness. Only able to find space once in the first half, James grabbed him down as a result. He had a half chance early in the second half courtesy of Kane, but Edouard Mendy was up to the challenge. After a mostly ineffective day, Son was replaced with 10 minutes left to play.
Right-forward – Dejan Kulusevski – 5
Like his teammates, Dejan Kulusevski was a complete non-factor in the first half, as Spurs struggled to get the Swede the ball. Dekki had the fewest touches on the team, with just nine in the first half. He saw a little space early in the second half but was tackled well by Thiago Silva. Kulusevski kept battling Chelsea and Antony Taylor most of the day. Kulusevski lost that battle against both when he was dispossessed in his own half, which led directly to Chelsea’s second goal.
The Tottenham midfield was thoroughly outplayed in the first half, as Spurs looked a step-slow to every ball. Although the percentage of balls won went up in the second half, Spurs were still second best until Kane saved a point.
Tottenham Midfield Ratings versus Blues
Central Midfield – Pierre Hojbjerg – 7
A step slow to the 50/50 balls, Hojbjerg’s obvious vocal leadership contributed most in the first half as the Dane kept working to push the line up defensively. Hojbjerg never stopped working and had a big diving block on Jorginho in the second half. Pierre-Emile was sharp in his passing overall but did not make enough penetrating forward passes. Fortunately, Hojbjerg could penetrate the Blue’s defense with an excellent screamer at 68 minutes to level the score at one.
Central Midfield – Rodrigo Bentancur – 5.5
Rodrigo Bentancur had some moments in the first half, showing some of his classic silky smooth touches. However, Bentancur’s forward passing was not as strong as he rushed to move the ball up the pitch into tight spaces. Add in being second best to most tackles, and Bentancur has seen better days. Rodrigo got away with a pretty blatant foul on Havertz in the second half. Hojbjerg scored the then-tying goal a minute or so later, which certainly added to the game’s intensity level. Bentancur was withdrawn immediately following Chelsea’s second goal.
Left-wing-back – Ryan Sessegnon – 6
Again starting on the left, Chelsea’s game plan called for giving Ryan Sessegnon space over the top as James left a void tracking Son. This led to Spurs’ best chance in the first half, but a poor set-up touch left Sessegnon with a tight angle, which Edouard Mendy saved. A few late challenges on Ruben Loftus-Cheek had the wing-back walking a tight line. Sessegnon was the first player substituted as Richarlison came on, and Spurs changed shape a little before the hour mark.
Right-wing-back – Emerson Royal – 6.5
Emerson Royal put in a shift in the first half defensively, although it is likely debatable if he was most at fault for the Koulibaly goal by not stepping up into the space on the corner. Royal got to the end line twice in the first half, but his crosses were both gathered by Mendy. Royal dropped to right back when Tottenham changed shape upon Richarlison’s introduction. The Brazilian knocked in a couple of crosses but never found the target and was replaced very late by Lucas Moura.
Tottenham was organized defensively, but there was an error on the first goal marking at the back post, and then a poor turnover left the backline open for Chelsea’s second.
Rating Spurs Defence against Chelsea
Centre-back – Eric Dier – 7
Chelsea had a game plan to get Eric Dier one-on-one in space with one of their forwards. Dier held up well in the first half, running with Kai Havertz and Mason Mount. Dier likewise held up well, shoving Antonio Conte back into his technical area following Hojbjerg’s goal as the defender never lost his head. Dier had a solid match overall, avoiding mistakes and working to handle the intense Chelsea pressure.
Left-back – Ben Davies – 6.5
Still holding down the left-back position Ben Davies spent much of the game chasing around Sterling and Havertz. Davies did not see much of the ball in the attacking half but did find Hojbjerg and garner an assist when he did. Davies, like Lloris, was mostly helpless on James’ goal, as Chelsea pounced quickly following the Tottenham turnover.
Right-back – Cristian Romero – 6.5
Tottenham’s defensive enforcer was in a big tackle early and got his knee stepped on. Afterward, there seemed to be a little impact, but Cristian Romero was back to his big tackling best by the second half. Romero was in the battles all day against Havertz and Sterling. Went head-to-head with Havertz at one point, but only the Chelsea attacker received the card. The Argentine defender got lucky late by not being carded or penalized for a hair pull on Cucarella; moments later, Kane scored.
Goalkeeper – Hugo Lloris – 6
Hugo Lloris was helpless to do anything on the Koulibaly first-half volley but faced only one other shot on target in the first half, despite Chelsea’s dominance in possession. Poor efforts from Mason Mount in the first half and Raheem Sterling in the second half helped Lloris. However, the Frenchman was most fortunate when Havertz failed to finish from a cross just a few feet away from the goal. Unfortunately, Lloris would not be so lucky when James was open on the right a few minutes later. Lloris went one way, and James went the other with the ball and the lead.
Changes had to be forthcoming with five substitutes available during three different exchanges and the team trailing at the half. Ultimately, Conte used all three opportunities to substitute but made only four changes
Rating Substitute Spurs and Coach Conte
Coach – Antonio Conte – 6
Tottenham jumped out of the blocks, clawing all over Chelsea in the game’s first five minutes. However, as Chelsea grew into the game, Spurs looked a bit tired as they were second-best to almost every ball. Conte earned his keep with the tactical changes in the second half, changing Tottenham’s shape and changing the game. Unfortunately, as Chelsea re-found their rhythm, Conte’s Tottenham struggled to keep their heads, fighting Taylor as much as Chelsea. As Spurs seemingly stole the point, Conte and Tomas Tuchel went head-to-head, earning the Italian a Red Card, but seemingly nothing for Tuchel, who had caused the ruckus by holding Conte’s hand as the two shook.
Substitute #1 – Richarlison – 6
Coming on for Sessegnon as Tottenham went to more of a 4-4-2 shape, Richarlison made his Tottenham debut with over half an hour to play. He did well to keep his cool after not getting a big call. Richarlison showed some pace but could not get behind the Blue’s backline, although he got under their skin.
Substitute #2 – Ivan Perisic – 7
Ivan Perisic was part of a double change immediately after James regave Chelsea the lead. Perisic’s first contribution was a corner kick he’d likely want back. Perisic made a later corner count, finding Kane for the game-tying goal at the death.
Substitute #3 – Yves Bissouma – 5
Coming on with Perisic, Yves Bissouma had about ten minutes to impact the game. Bissouma ran about but saw little of the ball.
Substitute # 4 – Lucas Moura – 5
Lucas Moura came on for Royal to give Tottenham more attacking options as Spurs searched for a late second-equalizer. Moura had a header chance that was deflected wide.