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The most awaited match of the weekend is none other than the London Derby, as Tottenham Hotspurs welcome Chelsea to White Hart Lane for an exciting clash.
It was a cracker of a match when these two teams last met as it produced 8 goals. The match ended 5-3 in favour of the Spurs.
However this time around, things look much more complicated for Chelsea who are currently sitting in15th position with just the14 points, 10 points behind Spurs and 14 points behind table toppers Leicester City. Chelsea would be looking to win this match and kick-start their campaign.
Spurs, on the other hand, have had a good run so far in the Premier League. They are in 5th position and just 4 points behind Leicester City (28). A win over Chelsea would mean that they’ve successfully won back-to-back Derbies. They beat West Ham 4-1 last weekend. Spurs would be looking to win this match and extend their unbeaten record of 12 matches.
Kickoff and Live Telecast
Date: 29th November 2015
Time: 12:00PM GMT (5:30PM IST)
Venue: White Hart Lane
Referee: Michael Oliver
Channel: StarSport HD1
Live Stream: starsports.com/ Hotstar app
Team News
SPURS
Dele Alli is suspended from this match for picking up 5 yellow cards, which results in a one-match suspension.
Pochettino will be delighted to welcome back midfielder Nabil Bentaleb for the clash against Chelsea. He has been a bright spark for Spurs ever since he found his way into the first team under the Argentine manager.
Nacer Chadli is also out for this clash as he picked up an ankle injury and should most probably return to action only next month. Another absentee is Alex Pritchard, who is set to return next year after damaging his ankle.
Unlike Chelsea, who played on Tuesday night, Spurs played on Thursday night and that should leave some players tired after their journey to and back from Azerbaijan to face Qarabag. Pochettino played his full strength squad in the Europa League and that should leave some of his players tired, but that doesn’t mean he will make any changes in the squad and is expected to field a strong lineup.
CHELSEA
Chelsea could be without 5 players for the London Derby. Although Courtois is back in training, it doesn’t look like he would play in the weekend and Mourinho has said that Courtois would be back only in December.
Falco also looks unavailable for the clash because of an injury, which he picked up in training some weeks ago, and is yet to recover from that.
Remy is expecting the birth of his first child and it looks certain that he would not be available for the match.
Ramires and John Terry both picked up injuries during the Champions League match on Tuesday. While the former picked up the injury while training a day before the match, the latter picked up the injury while playing the match and had to be carried off in a stretcher.
With both the strikers out for this derby, Jose will definitely have some headaches should Costa pick up an injury or a card. In that case, he has two options: one would be to play a false 9. Second would be to include a striker from the youth team. It all depends on Jose now.
Expected Lineups
Chelsea (4-2-3-1): Begovic, Ivanovic, Cahill, Terry, Azpilicueta, Matic, Fabregas; Willian, Pedro, Hazard, Costa
Spurs (4-2-3-1): Lloris, Walker, Alderweireld, Vertonghen, Rose; Dier, Alli, Lamela, Eriksen, Son, Kane
Form
Spurs
Spurs come into this game winning their last 4 games out of 5 and would be brimming with confidence in the Derby. Having beaten West Ham last weekend, Spurs equaled their club-record (set way back in March 1985) of 12 successive league games without a defeat. A win against Chelsea would then set a new record for the Spurs and sure enough, they are going to try and beat the Boys in Blue to achieve it.
Spurs have lost just 1 game so far, that too thanks to an own goal on the opening day of the season against Manchester United. Since then, there has been no looking back for them and have remained unbeaten.
Harry Kane has clicked just at the right time. He wasn’t on the scoresheet for the beginning of the league but has quickly found his way back and has since scored 9 goals in his last 6 games. He also scored twice in the 5-3 win over Chelsea last year and is now looking to add more goals to his name.
Spurs have so far not a single game in the Premier League while playing at home. They have played 7 games, winning 4 of those and drew the other 3 games.
Spurs: W-W-D-W-W (last game: 1-0 against Qabarag)
Chelsea
The Boys in Blue would be hoping to forget the past and start afresh. They have had a disastrous start to the Premier League and would now want to cash in on back-to-back victories they have had against Norwich (1-0) and Maccabi Tel-Aviv (4-0).
Mourinho would be hoping his team can carry forward the momentum from the previous two victories. He is aware of the fact that Spurs have not lost a match since the opening day of the Premier League and are also looking to extend that lead. Jose has a tough job at hand, and if he manages to pull this one, it would surely boost the morale of the team and most probably put his team back on track in the Premier League.
Eden Hazard has slowly been regaining his form and Chelsea would want him to step up and lead from the front. He has scored in his last 3 games against Spurs and would look to continue that.
Chelsea do not have a good away record as well this season. They have played 6 games, winning just once and drew 1 game while losing the other 4.
Chelsea: L-W-L-W-W (last game: 4-0 against Maccabi)
Match Facts (POWERED BY OPTA)
- Tottenham Hotspur’s 5-3 victory on New Year ended a run of 9 League matches without a win over Chelsea (W0 D5 L4).
- Spurs have lost just 1 of their last 9 home league meetings with Chelsea (W4 D4).
- Cesc Fabregas has provided 11 BPL assists against Spurs; 5 more than against any other opponent in the competition.
Key battles
Kane vs Costa
Both these strikers have made headlines in the past few weeks, but for different reasons. Kane has the made the headlines for his ability to score goals for his team and returning back to form and being the top scorer of 2015 so far with 24 goals.
Costa, on the other hand, made the headlines for all the wrong reasons. He has so far, in this season, done everything apart from scoring goals. This has been a big worry for Mourinho and there have been players linked to the club to replace Costa.
Both these players will play a huge role in the derby this weekend. For either of the team to win, these players have to be in their best of form and score.
Kane vs Cahill and Zouma
With Terry most certainly out of this clash, it is up to Cahill and Zouma to stop Hurri’Kane’ from scoring. Well, that would be easier said than done. Kane is having a fantastic year so far. He is Premier League’s top scorer this year having 24 scored goals.
When the season began, people had expected the same from Kane they had seen last season. But just as it looked like he might have been a one season wonder, he found his form and is Spur’s highest leading goal scorer having scored 8 goals already.
Cahill and Zouma have a task tough at hand. They know Kane is their main threat and if they manage to keep him quiet, Chelsea have a greater chance of winning the game. However, Chelsea’s defense has been shaky this year. From having the best defense last season to having among the worst defensive lineup this season, things don’t look good for both the centre-backs.
Overall record
Total: 142
Spurs wins: 47
Chelsea wins: 61
Draw: 34
At White Hart Lane
Total: 130
Spurs wins: 43
Chelsea wins: 55
Draw: 32
Prediction
You can never say who would win a derby. But this time things look different. Spurs are favourites to win the London Derby given the form they are in. Except for Chelsea fans, all other people are backing Spurs to win this and add up to Chelsea woes. But then, nothing can be predicted in football, especially in a derby match. But you can never rule Chelsea out and take them for granted. They have the resources to win this match and prove their haters wrong.
A draw wouldn’t be a bad result. But somehow my gut feeling tells me Chelsea would win this match. Hoping this to be a cracker of a match, which the fans enjoy irrespective of the scoreline.
Predicted score: Spurs 1-2 Chelsea
Betting Odds (BET365)
Spurs to win: 8/5
Draw: 12/5
Chelsea to win: 19/10
