Chelsea's 13-match unbeaten run came to a halt at White Hart Lane as Spurs emerged victorious by two goals to nil. Dele Alli scored his third consecutive brace to give the home side all three points. Alli scored identical goals, both headers, on either side of the half to end a historic run for the Blues.
A defeat would have ended Spurs' title challenge but the Lilywhites are back in the race and are now just seven points behind the league leaders. Conte's men needed a win to gain a solid lead over their title rivals but failed to do so which has made the race to the summit even more exciting.
An amazing match took place at the Lane which had huge repercussions on the title race so let's take a look at the five talking points from the London Derby:
#1 Pochettino matched Conte's system and beat him at it
Since the last two games, Pochettino has gone on to play three at the back and it might be a decision taken in order to be prepared for this game. It paid dividends as the two fullbacks higher up the pitch negated Chelsea's wide threat and helped Spurs dominate the game.
Both their goals came from the right flank after some good work by Kyle Walker resulted in Christian Eriksen delivering a superb cross for Dele Alli to head home. Spurs have kept two clean sheets in three games by playing three at the back and the manager is expected to opt for it in the future as well.
#2 Diego Costa's bad side was on show at the Lane
Since Conte's arrival, Costa has toned down his behaviour somewhat and has not got into unnecessary fights with his opponents. But that was not the case against Spurs as the Spaniard looked jaded from the start and grew frustrated as the game went on. After a misunderstanding in a counter attack, Costa and Pedro clashed which was a sign of things to come.
Costa also rushed to take a throw in when Marcos Alonso was on his way to take it much to the wing back's disappointment. It was a petty performance from the league's top scorer and just when it looked like we had seen the last of the bad Diego Costa, here he was in his first match of 2017.
#3 Spurs win the midfield battle
The pairing of Moussa Dembele and Victor Wanyama is looking stronger with each passing game and they showed that in their side's most important game of the season till date. The pair played with grit and did not give Chelsea’s attackers space or time on the ball. They tracked back well and also kept the ball moving, passing it onto their attackers.
With the home side being defensively calm and composed at the back and also dominating in the centre of the park, it gave a license to Spurs' trio of Kane, Alli and Eriksen to attack freely and ultimately the 20-year-old did the trick for the Lilywhites. Alli scored identical headers to take his tally to six goals in a week for the Londoners and showed his immense talent again to be the difference in big games.
#4 Chelsea’s schoolboy errors and Conte's late substitutions
To concede one goal from a delightful cross can be termed unfortunate. But to concede two identical goals against a strong defensive unit was not expected from this Chelsea side. They were out jumped by a 20-year-old not once but twice in what was a mix up of errors, lack of communication and a lethargic approach to defending from the best defence in the league.
Conte has done immensely well since his arrival and has mostly made the right calls to guide his team to the top of the table. Against Spurs, though, he was late in bringing on the likes of Willian and Fabregas. With the duo looking sharp after their arrival, it was evident that the Blues needed fresh legs to at least attempt a comeback and score a goal to put the home side under pressure.
#5 Spurs are genuine title challengers
This season's run of form has firstly proved one point for Mauricio Pochettino's men – that last season's title run was not a one-off but instead a sign of things to come. The Argentine is slowly building a brilliant side to challenge the big guns of English football. They are not a long way behind their other title rivals and now with a win over Chelsea, no other team in the top six will take Spurs lightly.
Tottenham have now won against Manchester City and Chelsea at home and have done well against the big sides after Pochettino's arrival. They now face Arsenal and Manchester United at home next which means that they can hope for a good few months with the majority of their tough fixtures being at home. All the attention has been on Chelsea and Liverpool but Spurs have arrived silently on the scene and it does not look like their challenge will fade away soon.
