Chelsea FC vs Tottenham Hotspur - Competition: English Premier League
Chelsea team
were halted on the road over the weekend when they traveled to the
Stadium of Light to take on Sunderland. The Black Cats had won their
previous 2 meetings with Chelsea, including a historic road victory last
season at Stamford Bridge to end manager Jose Mourinho’s home unbeaten
streak in the Premier League. While Chelsea managed to avoid defeat
this go-around, they were held to their first scoreless match all season
(20 competitive fixtures). Mourinho hailed Sunderland’s stubborn
defending but failed to point out the fact that his troops easily
could’ve lost the game. But the result alone is what matters and Chelsea remain invincible through 13 Premier League rounds. However, they have been dealt bad news here with the suspension of hot-headed Diego Costa,
who picked up his 5th yellow card of the season. But the Spaniard was
arguably lucky to have avoided red, and his quick temper won’t do him
any favors in the physical English top-flight. Nevertheless, Didier
Drogba has been in fine form and should be able to carry the torch this
midweek. Furthermore, look for midfield passmaster Cesc Fabregas to be able to find more success than he did last time out against Lee Cattermole and the feisty Black Cats.
Tottenham are rapidly improving after
a series of troubling results in the English Premier League saw them pick up
just 5 points through 7 league matches. But manager Mauricio Pochettino
is beginning to convince his players to buy into his system, and their
form has taken a drastic turn for the better. They have now won 3 of their last 4 Premier League contests while claiming victory in 6 of their last 7 matches in all competitions.
But before their weekend clash with Everton last time out, the Hotspurs
had yet to bag a win against a top 5 club from last term. But an
unlikely hero in Soldado popped up to steal all
of the points in just their 2nd league win in 6 tries at White Hart
Lane, as the Spaniard smashed in his first goal in the Premier League
since March. He may have not had a great overall game but if he can find
his scoring boots for the striker-hungry club, there’s no telling where
he can take this team. However, the fixture list isn’t kind to them
this midweek as they will turn around and travel to Stamford Bridge to
face the odds-on favorites to win the title. They were thrashed last season by the hosts 4:0 in West London,
and while there shouldn’t be a repeat of that scoreline here, defeat
will be a difficult thing to avoid for the traveling North Londoners.
Probable lineups:
Chelsea FC: Courtois – Ivanovic, Cahill, Terry, Azpilicueta – Matic, Fabregas – Willian, Oscar, Hazard – Remy.
Tottenham: Lloris – Naughton, Fazio, Vertonghen, Davies – Bentaleb, Mason – Lamela, Paulinho, Eriksen – Soldado.
Match date: Wednesday, 3 December 2014
Kick Off Time: 19:45 BST
Venue: Stamford Bridge, London, United Kingdom
Kick Off Time: 19:45 BST
Venue: Stamford Bridge, London, United Kingdom
