Saturday’s Premier League action takes us to north London, as bitter rivals Chelsea and Tottenham face off for their first meeting of the season. Since their last meeting both clubs have gone on and won European trophies with Tottenham winning the Europa League after defeating Manchester United, and Chelsea winning the Europa Conference League against Real Betis to become the first ever club to win all UEFA club competitions. The Blues would go on to become World Champions in the summer after defeating PSG in the Club World Cup Final.
Preview
Both teams enter this match with a win and a loss each in their last two games with Thomas Frank’s side becoming the first away team to win at the new Hill Dickinson Stadium in a 3-0 victory over Everton. Following their victory over the Toffees, the North London side was then knocked out of the Carabao Cup against a tough Newcastle side.
Chelsea, on the other hand, haven’t had the best start to their season with Enzo Maresca’s side currently sitting at 9th place in the Premier League table, the lowest ranked team out of the ‘Big 6’ and six places behind Spurs. During the midweek the Blues, unlike Spurs, advanced to the Carabao Cup Quarter-Finals after a seven-goal thriller at the Molineux against a struggling Wolves side.
Head-to-Head
The London Derby between these two clubs isn’t just a simple rivalry but has grown to be one of the biggest battles in the Premier League over the past few years, especially the infamous Battle of The Bridge in 2016.
Tottenham have secured just one victory in their last ten encounters with Chelsea, with the Blues dominating the fixture by claiming eight wins and sharing the spoils on only one occasion.
Team News
Chelsea
Enzo Maresca was furious after Liam Delap was sent off for a second yellow card in a feisty seven-goal affair against Wolves. Chelsea’s new no.9 was looking to be back in form ahead of this weekend’s matchup against Tottenham after being out since late August due to a hamstring injury. The son of former Stoke City midfielder, Rory Delap, will serve his one-match suspension against Tottenham.
Chelsea will be without their main man Cole Palmer, who has not featured since being forced to leave the pitch against Man United after just 21 minutes, due to a groin injury. Palmer finished in the Top 8 of the Ballon D’or for his contributions to club and country for the 24/25 season, where he faced Tottenham twice and scored 2 goals in a 4-3 win at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium and assisted Enzo Fernandez’s goal in a 1-0 win over the Lillywhites at Stamford Bridge.
New signing Dario Essugo remains injured due to a thigh injury and won’t be featuring until late December 2025. Similarly, French centre-back Benoit Badiashille is out due to a knock he picked against Chelsea’s win over Liverpool in October.
The only long-term absentee for the World Champions, remains first choice centre-back, Levi Colwill. The Englishman remains out due to an ACL injury he picked up during the pre-season.
Probable Lineup: Sanchez (GK), James (C), Acheampong, Chalobah, Cucurella, Caicedo, Enzo, Neto, Joao Pedro, Garnacho, Guiu.
Tottenham
Thomas Frank’s side has been unlucky with injuries this season, with the likes of Archie Gray and Ben Davies out due to Muscle Injuries and won’t be back before mid December and late November, respectively. Yves Bissouma won’t return until late November because of a knock he suffered earlier this season.
Kota Takai and Dejan Kulusevski won’t feature until late November and are both out due to a foot injury and knee injury, respectively. Striker Dominic Solanke remains out due to an ankle injury and won’t feature against his former club.
The only long-term absentees for Tottenham remain James Maddison and Radu Dragusin, who are both out due to a Cruciate Ligament Injury. The latter featured against Swedish side Elfsborg, in a 3-0 victory for Spurs. Maddison hasn’t played a competitive game for the Lillywhites since their 3-1 victory over Norwegian side Bodø/Glimt in the Europa League Semi-Final first-leg.
Despite an extensive injury list, Thomas Frank’s side has received a boost ahead of their match against Chelsea with club captain and FIFA World Cup winner, Cristian Romero available for selection after spending nearly a month on the sidelines due to a Muscle injury. The likes of Destiny Udogie and Wilson Odobert are also available for selection after returning from injuries.
Probable Lineup: Vicario (GK), Porro, Van De Ven (C), Danso, Spence, Palinha, Bentancur, Kudus, Johnson, Simons, Richarlison.
Where The Match Will Be Decided
Although being marginal favourites, Chelsea’s defence has been woeful this season, both of these teams have been lethal in front of goal as they’re tied on the most goals scored this season (17) along with Manchester City. Set-pieces will play a huge role in this fixture with Tottenham scoring 2 goals from corners through Micky Van De Van. Chelsea have scored 9 of their 17 goals through set-pieces making them the second highest scoring set-piece team behind Arsenal (11). The match will be decided through how effectively the Blues can manage to break Tottenham’s defensive line, and how well the Lillywhites will manage transitions and set-pieces.
Under Enzo Maresca, the World Champions have favoured a possession base style of play, which might force the home side into a compact low block. If West Londoners fail to turn possession into clear chances, their opposition will leave no chance in punishing them.
Betting odds: 2.70 (Tottenham), 3.60 (Draw), 2.55 (Chelsea)
Match Prediction
Tottenham are higher in league position but have been inconsistent at home against Chelsea whereas they have a strong historical record against the Lillywhites, especially away. This can give Chelsea a psychological edge.
We go for Tottenham 2-3 Chelsea.
