By Ian King
Two out of form London rivals
Neither club are in especially stellar form at the moment, with Chelsea having won just four Premier League games in 2025 so far and Spurs having won just three and both clubs having been eliminated early from both the EFL and FA Cups. Chelsea’s only recent wins have come against relegation fodder in the form of Leicester City and Southampton, while Spurs have failed to win any of their last three Premier League matches.
History
Chelsea have long had the upper hand in this fixture, with Spurs having won just two of their last sixteen meetings, going back more than six years. They’ve won more Premier League matches against Spurs – 36 – than any other team, while earlier this season Chelsea won 4-3 at The Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. Going back a little further, both sides have some degree of reason to be a little cheerful. Spurs won their last major trophy against Chelsea, the EFL Cup in 2008, and beat them in the 1967 FA Cup final. But the last time the two clubs met in a cup final, Chelsea beat Spurs 2-0 to win the 2015 EFL Cup.
Key players
Southampton aside, Chelsea haven’t scored more than a single goal in a Premier League match since the start of February. Enzo Maresca will, therefore, likely be pleased to see the return of Nicolas Jackson from injury. Jackson is Chelsea’s second highest goalscorer so far in the Premier League this season behind Cole Palmer with nine goals. But will Maresca throw him straight back in?
With the pressure starting to build on Ange Postecoglou, the Spurs manager needs big performances from his available big name players for this match. James Maddison scored the goal that finished off AZ in their recent Europa League last 16 match. Spurs will be needing his creativity in midfield if the Chelsea defence is to be unlocked.
Team News
Cole Palmer, Noni Madueke and Nicolas Jackson all returned to training for Chelsea during the international break, but Omari Kellyman and Marc Guiu both remain sidelined. The injury situation is worse for Spurs, who will be missing Radu Drăgușin and Dejan Kulusevski, while Kevin Danso, Richarlison and Lucas Bergvall all remain doubtful, though could be due to return after their combined international and FA Cup break.
Prediction
Ange Postecoglou needs a result, and while Chelsea away is a bit of a nightmare fixture for Spurs – they haven’t won at Stamford Bridge in seven years – another defeat would only continue to build the narrative that the manager will be on his way come the end of this season. Chelsea may still be patchy themselves, at times, but they have the necessary institutional arrogance to get through a game like this without too many worries. I’ll go for a comfortable 3-1 Chelsea win and the agony to continue to pile up for their London rivals.
(Cover image from IMAGO)
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