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Jose Mourinho (L), Andre Villas-Boas will face-off against each other for the first time in their managerial career
This Sunday, Tottenham Hotspurs will host their cross-London rivals in the first ‘top four’ clash this season. This game has all the earmarks of a dramatic encounter, as this match can also be treated as a ‘Master vs The Apprentice’ tie. Though, David Luiz of Chelsea has played down the clash between the two managers, it will be fascinating to see Jose Mourinho and Andre Villas Boas face each other in a professional match for the first time after AvB chose his independent path in management.
Tottenham form and team news.
Form in the last 5 matches: L W W W W.
After re-investing all the cash earn by the record sale of Gareth Bale, AvB can be satisfied with the depth of the squad at his disposal. With all the attacking talent at Spurs, their defense has produced eye-catching performances, by conceding just one goal in all competitions this season, with the only goal coming at the hands of Arsenal in their 1-0 defeat.
Thus, it would be surprising if there would be a change in formation in this match, thus retaining the 4-2-3-1. Hugo Lloris would be confident to start for the same reasons. Danny Rose is doubtful for the clash alongside Kaboul. So, it would be interesting to see if Vertonghen is shifted to LB to give Chiriches his EPL debut, or Naughton gets to start at LB. Kyle Walker and Dawson could be considered as sure starters.
The solid pairing of Paulinho and Dembele can be expected to start, with Paulinho scoring in the last two matches. It would however be interesting to see if Hotby gets a deeper role to start in the big match, as he has been impressive in his last two mid-week clashes against Villa and Tromso.
Sigurdsson is tipped to start on the left, and record-signing Lamela can be touted to start on the right, with Lennon being injured and Townsend failing to perform consistently in his start to the campaign.
Up front, Soldado can retain his position, though, Defoe has shown enough glimpses of his best in his recent performances to give Villas-Boas a selection headache. Christian Eriksen who has had an amazing start to his career in England, is all but sure to start behind the striker.
Chelsea Form and team news:
Form in the Last 5 matches : D L L W W
Chelsea fans would not be too pleased with the start of their season after the much celebrated return of Jose Mourinho. With a loss and a draw in the first 5 matches, they sit two points behind Tottenham, and this match would be seen as the perfect opportunity to leap above their London rivals.
Jose Mourinho has adopted the same formation of 4-2-3-1 which was played for last couple of seasons at the Bridge. Jose made 10 changes to the starting line-up for their midweek victory against Swindon Town in the Capital-One Cup tie, with Cahill as the only retained player.
For this weekend, Schwarzer would make way for Peter Cech, and Cole shall be selected ahead of Bertrand at the left-back position. John Terry looks set to start, as he has played all the league matches so far, with either of Luiz or Cahill partnering him in the central defense. Despite his strong performance midweek, Azpilicueta looks likely to return to the bench, for Ivanovic, who has been arguably the best performer for Chelsea this season, playing at right-back.
Chelsea suffered a huge blow in the midfield area, as the young Van Ginkel suffered a serious injury in his right knee against Swindon Town. He is set to be unavailable for the next 6-9 months, thus ruling him out for the good part of this entire season.
Ramires, who substituted Van Ginkel, also had to be replaced at half time after having suffered a knock in the hamstring. Though not confirmed, he is unlikely to start this weekend, in what would have been an eventful clash between two Brazilians playing in the same position for the national team.
This implies a Lampard-Mikel combination for the double pivot, as Essien has played only one match since the start of this season. Much has been talked about the Mourinho-Mata saga with the former clearly stating that his preferred player in the no. 10 role is Oscar.
Hazard seems to be his favoured winger, as he has started all matches prior to the midweek cup-tie this season. Mata would be competing against Schurrle for the starting role on the right, and this would greatly determine the mindset with which Jose approaches this game. Schurrle provides the defensive work-rate and marking, but lacks the creativity and guile offered by Mata.
Whether Mata’s midweek performance has impressed Jose enough remains to be seen.
Eto’o seems to be Jose’s primary target man, with Torres and Ba following in the ranks. Though, Torres had a stellar performance midweek earning him the man of the match award and whether Jose sticks to his words for surely starting the MoTM in the next one, can only be confirmed this weekend.
Head to Head and Key stats:
Chelsea lost just 3 matches in their 42 against the Spurs in EPL, Chelsea are unbeaten in the last 7.
There were 3 draws and 2 Chelsea victories in the last 5 encounters.
None of Chelsea’s striker have scored this season in the league.
Chelsea have not score more than 2 in last 11 league matches, while Tottenham have won their last 5 home league matches, with a clean sheet in all of last 4.
Tottenham have conceded more goals against Chelsea at home in the league, than against any other team.
Chelsea have not failed to score in 3 successive away games since 2002.
(Stats source: talksport.com, whoscored.com)
