A London derby that always throws up plenty of goals, it’s fifth playing 15th, but not how you ever would have thought it.
It’s hard to imagine Chelsea struggling in midtable but that’s where Jose Mourinho’s men lie, as four wins from 13 league games is the stuff of relegation candidates, not title-challenging champions.
And at the other end of the table, Spurs sit comfortably in their usual position of fifth place; so comfortably in fact, that position is starting to have a cockerel-shaped groove in it.
Unbeaten since losing to Manchester United on the opening day, dare it seems that the ‘Spursy’ days are officially over? With Mauricio Pochettino guiding his young Hot Spurs to just four points off of surprising leaders Leicester, there’s been whispers this season that Tottenham could mount a possible title challenge.
Which all seems rather silly… doesn’t it?
There’s potential with Pochettino’s players that they could go on to achieve something great this season, but first, they need to get past a Chelsea side that enjoyed a strong 4-0 victory over Maccabi Tel-Aviv and will relish the chance to get their season back on track with victory at White Hart Lane.
Chelsea
The only accolade Chelsea will appear to win this season is the award for the worst Premier League title defence in history.
At this point last season, Chelsea were riding high unbeaten, with 33 points from 13 games.
This time around, they’ve barely more points than games, with a lowly 14 points and a whopping 23 goals shipped in.
Their struggles have been well highlighted this season and with off the field problems also dogging their campaign, it’s not a happy time for The Blues.
Just two wins in their last seven league games is an alarming run of form for a usually formidable Chelsea and all sorts of questions have been raised about the form of key personnel.
PFA Player of the Year Eden Hazard has been totally anonymous; just two assists in the league with the last one coming all the way back in September, with no goals to show for the cause.
Last year’s midfield pairing of Cesc Fabregas and Nemanja Matic have been extremely poor, with the former in particular under fire for his lack of attacking impetus.
Up front, Diego Costa has been involved in more bust-ups and controversies than goals, with just four in 15 appearances all season.
And a defence that last year prided itself on conceding just 32 in the league are only nine goals away from equalling the total before the halfway point.
Jose Mourinho has come out and said he’d be happy to end the season with the squad he has. But with a move mooted for Shakthar Donetsk star Alex Teixeira, the Portuguese needs something or someone to spark his champions into life.
Chelsea’s recent Champions League win in Israel has provided some comfort from their domestic struggles, but a win on Sunday would be a huge boost and a kick-starter to their season.
It looks like they’ll have to do it without John Terry however, who was stretchered off in midweek with an ankle injury.
Tottenham
Across London, things are much rosier.
Tottenham themselves enjoyed a decent win in Europe with a 1-0 win over Qarabag ensuring qualification from their Europa League group.
But a 4000km trip to Azerbaijan would not have been ideal preparation for such an important game.
If Spurs want to prove they can mix it with the big boys, they need to show it against Chelsea and put them to the sword.
So emphatic in their 4-1 destruction of West Ham United, Spurs play with such an energy and enthusiasm that has been lacking from north London for so many years.
The problem is whether they can sustain it. And should this young side start to wobble, where is the leadership that’s going to get them through the hardship.
With Chelsea struggling for goals, the Tottenham defence will perhaps breathe slightly easier, but will be weary of Diego Costa and his physicality and nastiness.
The other issue is concentration; Kyle Walker knew he let himself down by giving a sloppy goal away against The Hammers, but against Eden Hazard, Willian and Cesc Fabregas, they don’t need a second invitation to pounce on errors.
Dele Alli’s suspension has been a big blow considering how comfortable he looks on the big stage, but the performances of Mousa Dembele will be of comfort to Mauricio Pochettino, likely to have the Belgian deep alongside Eric Dier with Ryan Mason recalled to the starting XI.
With five assists in 10 Premier League games, Christian Eriksen is starting to show consistency and on the wing, Heung-Min Son played extremely well against West Ham and will likely start again with Erik Lamela a slight doubt.
Harry Kane was the star of the show on New Year’s Day in the 5-3 win in this fixture last time and he’s scored in his last six appearances for Spurs, with nine goals in total.
He’ll be key to ensure similar success at White Hart Lane come 2pm.
Prediction: A loss would slightly derail Spurs’ chances of finishing in the top four and it would be typical if this was the game that Chelsea’s fortunes started to turn around; but it shouldn’t be if Tottenham keep up the intensity that has served them well.
Tottenham 3-1 Chelsea
