Chelsea won 2-0 in the derby against Tottenham, almost depriving their opponent of a chance to qualify for the Champions League.
There was only one change in the starting lineup of the Blues. It was Alfie Gilchrist who appeared in place of the injured Tiago Silva. Trevo Chalobah moved to the center of the defense.
But Spurs coach Ange Postecoglou changed half of the field players regarding the derby against Arsenal, putting his trust in Emerson Royal, Papadar Sarr, Yves Bissouma, Brennan Johnson and Richarlison.
Chelsea almost opened the scoring in the fifth minute. Nicholas Jackson burst into the penalty area on the left edge and, having received a timely pass, shot into touch. Tottenham goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario only slowed down the ball, which was heading into an empty net, but Mickey Van de Ven rescued his team. It is noteworthy that the projectile was knocked out directly at Cole Palmer, who did not use this gift.
The Stamford Bridge hosts attacked with great enthusiasm, and their pressure culminated in a goal midway through the first half. Conor Gallagher scored from a free kick, and Chalobah shot his head under the crossbar — 1-0.
The “blue” ones continued to look preferable. “Spurs” only pushed the game away from their goal closer to halftime, but for the entire first half they managed only three inaccurate shots.
In the second half, the visitors took the initiative and began to put pressure on themselves. Now the hosts were forced to focus on defense, almost forgetting about attacks.
In the 72nd minute, Chelsea managed to double the score — again thanks to the standard position. Palmer hit the crossbar from a free kick, and Jackson hit the ball into the goal with his head — 2-0.
In the rest of the match, Tottenham had a couple of good chances to get back into the game, but failed to take advantage of them.
Chelsea won a well-deserved victory, thanks to which they rose to eighth place. But Tottenham disappointed, despite the fact that they added in the second half.
Chelsea vs Tottenham. Match Report