Chelsea came back from two goals down to secure a magnificent 4–3 comeback victory away at Tottenham in an exhilarating Premier League encounter at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
Tottenham, buoyed by the return of centre backs Micky van de Ven and Cristian Romero, began this match in a blistering fashion, racing into a 2–0 lead after 11 minutes, thanks to goals from Dominic Solanke and Dejan Kulusevski.
Chelsea left back Marc Cucurella was culpable for both goals, slipping twice in his own half to gift Tottenham the ball for both their goals. However, his assist for Jadon Sancho’s brilliant long-range strike gave Chelsea hope as the away side pulled a goal back before the break.
In the second half though, Chelsea completely turned the match on its head after Cole Palmer’s penalty leveled the scoring, before his dazzling footwork helped set up Enzo Fernández’s outstanding half-volley to put the Blues in front.
Tottenham’s second half capitulation was complete when they conceded another penalty, from which Palmer dispatched his spot kick with an audacious chip.
Despite Son Heung-min's injury time consolation for the home side, Chelsea held on to sealed another iconic triumph in north London, and now sit in second place, four points behind Liverpool.
Here are three things we learned from this remarkable London derby at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium:
Chelsea is an attacking force to be reckoned with
Chelsea, under manager Enzo Maresca, has become an enterprising and free-scoring team this season, entering this match as the Premier League’s top scorers with 31 goals from 14 matches. And after putting five goals past Southampton in midweek, the Blues found themselves requiring more devastating attacking play after falling 2–0 down against Tottenham after just 10 minutes.
Yet, even after falling behind, Chelsea still looked very menacing, and when Sancho curled in a rasping shot to get the Blues’ first of the afternoon, it appeared certain more goals were coming for the away side. Palmer’s brilliance in the second half drove Chelsea onward as it overpowered Tottenham in the second half to finish the week with nine goals in two Premier League games.
Tottenham under Postecoglou has become Jekyll and Hyde Hotspur
Tottenham manager Ange Postecoglou would have been delighted with his team’s performance in the first half, as it blasted forward against Chelsea in the first half with some excellent attacking play. The Australian manager entered this match very much under pressure after the team’s 1–0 away defeat against Bournemouth on Sunday, but would have been horrified by how his side crumbled in the second half.
Midfielders Yves Bissouma and Pape Matar Sarr both conceded foolish penalties as Tottenham lost its resolve in the second half to allow Chelsea to wrestle all three points away from the home side.
Spurs have now won only one game from their last seven matches in all competitions, and under Postecoglou, still remain incapable of producing consistent performances over an extended period of time. This match worryingly showed that Spurs are capable of such stark inconsistency over the course of 90 minutes.
Both teams should have had sending offs in this match
This match, much like last season’s clash between the two teams produced an absolute classic match with plenty of goals and drama. However, unlike last season’s 4–1 victory for Chelsea at this stadium last year in November, which saw Tottenham reduced to nine men, this match did not have any red cards for either team. But referee Anthony Taylor perhaps should have sent two players off in this match.
First, Chelsea midfielder Moisés Caicedo had a late challenge on Bissouma in the first half, where his studs plunged onto the shin of Sarr, and the Ecuadorian somehow escaped a booking for his tackle. Then, Kulusevski right before halftime flung his elbow out into the temple of Chelsea midfielder Romeo Lavia, and the Swede also escaped punishment for his action.
With all the goals that flowed at both ends of the pitch, Taylor may perhaps be fortunate that his decisions have been overshadowed by the action in this memorable encounter.
This article was originally published on www.si.com as Three Takeaways: Chelsea Comes Back to Seal Stunning 4–3 Win Over Spurs.
