Chelsea vs. Tottenham Hotspur Premier League Preview
A triumphant victory over Coventry on Monday gave Tottenham Hotspur its first win of the Premier League season, doubling its goal total and getting the club out of the relegation places (woohoo). Ironically, it was not exactly the best on-pitch performance by the team this season, but it is the one that yielded the best result, so complaints are minimal this week.
Unfortunately, all of those positive vibes might be short lived, as this weekend brings a trip to perhaps the least happy place on earth. It has been quite some time since Spurs have won a league fixture at Stamford Bridge, and this Chelsea squad enters Saturday in the top four with third-best title odds on the young season, bolstered by the lack of European competition.
With Tottenham still finding its footing (two months into the campaign…) and still getting players like James Maddison and Dejan Kulusevski up to full fitness, this is not the ideal time for this derby. However, there really is never a great time for Chelsea away, so might as well get this over with.
Given a loss is the expectation, this weekend does offer the chance for a pleasant surprise, as unlikely as that would be. Match Details Date: Saturday, October 24 Time: 12:30 pm ET, 5:30 pm UK Location: Stamford Bridge, London TV: NBCSN/Peacock (US), Sky Sports Main Event (UK) So, yea.
Spurs have lost home and away to Chelsea in each of the past three seasons and have not won in their last eight trips to the Bridge in the league. A result last May would have secured safety, but Richarlison's goal was not enough to overcome a 2-0 deficit.
The last time Tottenham found points at this venue was in Handshakegate in August 2022, with a late pull of the hair before a Harry Kane equalizer. Expected goals are not everything, but even the eye test shows that Tottenham could have/should have scored more often in the recent outings leading up to the Coventry match.
Perhaps the argument is that this squad lacks some of the finishing ability of past Spurs attackers…but then Monday night saw the home side score three times from outside the box. The Chelsea defense has only allowed a single goal in its past two matches, but conceded at least two in every match ahead of the international break.
The Blues are third in goals scored but bottom seven in goals allowed, meaning this might end up with a lot of action given Xabi Alonso's counterpress, as his squad seeks to win the ball back and hit in transition. Though three goals against a promoted side is not earth-shattering, I do think it was encouraging to see that happening without Savio available and with Dominic Solanke still trying to justify his place.
Roberto De Zerbi has yet to have his theoretical top options all available up front, meaning this team has certainly not hit its ceiling. The components are there to take advantage of this defense, though it will require strong finishing once again.