a win at Chelsea?
For just the second time in the Premier League, Spurs won a game at Chelsea, their second win in a week moving them from plumb bottom of the league on Monday to out of the relegation places.
It’s the lowest of low bars being the best game and best win under De Zerbi, most of the games last season, even the wins, were a struggle, a poor struggle, as have most of the games so far this.
This was so much better, if you didn’t pay attention to the BBC, otherwise you would have thought that Chelsea dominated a game in which Spurs had 70% of the ball and more shots. Stats that were so in Spurs favour even before the red card. The only stat Chelsea were ahead in at that point was shots on target, which was level by the final whistle.
As their player scorer decided that a player with three tackles, broke up and destroyed the Spurs midfield, and deserved an 8. While a Spurs player who had more tackles, touched the ball far more often, was more successful with his passes and contributed to the opening goal only deserved a 7.
The only problems Spurs faced were again self inflicted, you know that fannying about at the back and van Hecke forgetting he had to defend Morgan Rogers. Kinsky did make some good saves.
The home side looked a bit clueless without their striker, something Spurs have got used to over the last couple of seasons. But the visiting midfielders were looking like the midfield we all wanted. Maddison starting again for the second straight game, with Fernandes and Tonali. Bentancur’s red card paying off. The young Portuguese offer far more.
Unfortunately it didn’t even last the hour as Maddison dropped to the turf and sat there with that look on his face. Hobbling off he was not like for like replaced by Gallagher. It hadn’t really kicked off yet as a derby, it would take another 20 minutes.
Sours coughing up possession, Chelsea were on the break, van de Ven went in with a reckless challenge, then as Palmer took off with the ball, Fernandes was all over him doing everything, illegal, to stop him. All while van Hecke hadn’t a clue where Rogers was, again. S Fernandes was getting up Palmer charged him. If it had been a Spurs player doing this it would have been a straight red – I did hear someone say something about provocation, you know like when Shaw runs 20 yards to push you over – but of course it being a Spurs player on the end, it was only a yellow for Palmer.
By now the ineffectual Solanke had come on for the ineffectual Marmoush – he’s a wide player not a striker. While Porro was back, Robertson making way. The Jock had made those good underlapping and overlapping runs, put in some decent balls, just if there was someone there to finish these things off.
It was the 77th minute, Solanke’s dithering led to a corner from Fernandes’s shot. The same payer put in an excellent set piece which the home keeper punched backwards into his own net.
Chelsea leaving four up at corners is a refreshing change, eight less bodies in the box.
Shortly after Palmer did receive his red card. A second yellow for a stamp on Gallagher – his best contribution to proceedings. It was a petulant challenge from a player who is getting more and more petulant. He meant it, the protests were empty gestures. The only surprise being the ref actually having the bottle to show the card.
That BBC journo earlier also stated one of the Chelsea defenders had an outstanding game. He was the defender Tel ran away from to score the second. It’s funny, this is what Tel can do, when he uses his pace and runs forward but throughout the game, when he wasn’t passing to Robertson, he was facing inside and trying to dance through his defender, stopping, fainting, left, right, outside, inside. When he does the simple stuff at pace he works, when he tries to be flash he’s pony. Even the final shot was an example, he took it early, instead of going on too far and taking far too many touches.
He only touched the ball about six or seven times in a run from halfway inside the Spurs half to the edge of the Chelsea box. He’d normally have more touches than that just trying to fanny about his defender.
To think they could do this without a real striker. With two wingers who for the most part are clueless with their final ball – Kudus was useless really again – losing Maddison for nearly a half. The spirit is there, just if there was the players.