Premier League Preview; Tottenham welcome rivals Chelsea

It’s a big weekend for Tottenham and Antonio Conte, with Spurs welcoming London rivals Chelsea in what looks to be an important match this Sunday.

Having not been in action since last weekend following our 2-0 victory over West Ham, Spurs should come into this one with little fatigue, although injuries continue to plague our squad.

News broke this week that Rodrigo Bentancur’s injury will likely see him sidelined until November, whilst Conte has revealed we are also unlikely to see Yves Bissouma back in action this season. This should again see Skipp join Hojbjerg in midfield. However, the frontline looks to be causing Conte a real dilemma.

Last weekend, Spurs lined up with Kane, Kulusevski, and Richarlison, with Son dropping to the bench. However, the Korean made his presence felt quickly after coming on, scoring Spurs’ second goal of the game and ultimately sealing the points.

Big decision with the Tottenham front three

This leaves Conte with a decision – to start Son after his goal last weekend or bring him on later in the game in the hope he has the same impact; personally, I’d prefer the latter.

Regardless, with three wins in four domestically, Spurs enter this one as the form side this weekend, with Chelsea struggling lately, intrinsic to their lack of consistency this all season.

The Blues are winless in four league games, with three successive draws to Liverpool, Fulham, and West Ham, all coming before a torrid home defeat to bottom-of-the-table Southampton last weekend.

Moreover, despite spending over £600m this season, Chelsea has struggled to find the net with no serial goalscorer, scoring just 23 times in the league this season – the lowest of any top-half side.

Granted, January loanee Joao Felix looks a threat and is one Romero and co will certainly have to be aware of, but considering the Blues have just six goals in their 11 post-World Cup games, Spurs should fancy our chances of keeping a clean sheet.

History not on Spurs side against the Blues

But as most Tottenham fans will be acutely aware, we historically don’t perform well against Chelsea. In our last 12 meetings, Spurs boast just one win – a penalty shootout victory in the Carabao Cup in 2020/21, whilst the Blues have won nine of the remaining 11 games.

That being said, in the reverse fixture at Stamford Bridge earlier in the season, despite trailing twice, we battled back on both occasions, with Kane sealing a hard-fought point as Richarlison also impressed in his club debut.

However, given the form of both sides, Sunday is the best chance in years for Spurs to beat Chelsea, with Conte likely eager to deliver an important win against his former employers.

Moreover, with Newcastle not playing Premier League football this weekend owing to the Carabao Cup final, this allows Spurs to extend their lead over the Magpies to four points, perhaps giving us a psychological advantage in the coming weeks.

Certainly, this looks like a must-win game against a direct rival and one that should see the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium electrified. Hopefully, we can capitalise on an out-of-form Chelsea side and deliver an important three points.