Five Key Takeaways on Tottenham 0-3 Chelsea Win
Here are five key takeaways on Tottenham 0-3 Chelsea from our Premier League win against bitter London rivals Tottenham at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on 19th of September 2021.
1. Thiago Silva delivers a golden performance
Heading into this clash there were questions over who would marshal Chelsea’s defence against the dynamic and dangerous duo of Kane and Son. On one hand, and like his defensive compatriot Antonio Rudiger, Andreas Christensen has been a player re-born under Tuchel (interestingly, this ascension starter when Christensen needed to fill in for Thiago when he injured himself during the last clash between Spurs and the Blues).
On the other, Thiago Silva has been rested for the early parts of the campaign and therefore represented the fresher of the two. In the end, Silva was given the nod to start alongside Andreas although Thiago would be the main man in the middle.
Thiago not only was able to keep Kane, Son and co quiet, but he also was a menace at set-pieces whereby he opened the scoring with a fine header and had another acrobatically saved by Lloris.
Per Squawka, Thiago won 100% of his aerial duels, made 6 clearances, 7 ball recoveries, 3 interceptions and didn’t concede a foul. Not a bad effort from a soon-to-be 37-year-old (22 September)!
2. Kepa helps Chelsea keep another clean sheet
While Tottenham only had two shots on goal, Kepa was a sound presence and looked assured throughout. In the first half when Spurs came out of the blocks the quicker and more aggressive of the two, there were some nervy moments for Chelsea that their goals would be breached fairly early in the contest. However, as the Blues have tended to demonstrate under Thomas Tuchel, scoring against Chelsea continues to be a problematic task.
However, stand-in goalkeeper Kepa stood tall and remained alert which instilled confidence in his fellow defenders that they could trust him to perform at their level. There was one instance in the first half where Son was played in nicely as Rudiger vacated space to shut down a free Spurs player but thankfully Kepa’s sharp reaction and anticipation quickly closed down the onrushing Son and prevented a big sight at goal. Had that gone in, the momentum of the game could’ve made it difficult for the Blues to swing it back in their favour.
While the likes of Silva, Christensen and Rudiger all played a starring role in keeping the home sides strong attacking players quiet, particularly in the second half, credit should be given to Kepa as he claimed crosses calmly, distributed the ball cleanly to get our attack moving, and was a composed and controlled presence for the duration of the match. While Mendy is the undisputed no.1, Tuchel will be pleased that his deputy continues to perform well when called upon.
Remarkably, per Squawka Chelsea have now kept 15 clean sheets in the Premier League and only conceded 14 goals since Tuchel arrived.
3. World-class Kanté returns with a bang
During the opening period of the match, it is fair to say that Spurs looked the more lively and likelier of the two teams to open the scoring based on the general run of play. While the Blues did manage to conjure up some counter-attacking chances in the first half, Tottenham was enjoying a lot of the ball and were winning both the 50-50 duels to ensure they would be on the front foot for large portions of the half.
Core to this dominance from Spurs came from the extra presence and tenacity they brought into the middle areas of the pitch whereby they had a numerical advantage in their midfield which made it challenging for the likes of Jorginho and Kovacic to establish their usual rhythm. Having recognised this, Tuchel was swift to change things up during the interval as he re-introduced the part human, part machine N’Golo Kanté for Mason Mount to try and reclaim a grip on the engine room. And that he did.
Photo by Visionhaus/Getty Image
The Blues looked a different team from the outset of the second half as they immediately looked invigorated and more purposeful with both their pressing and counter-pressing. Chelsea suffocated Spurs and forced a lot of turnovers to establish a strong presence with the ball in their half which made it highly challenging for them to get back into the game.
At the heart of this major swing was Chelsea’s humble and hard-working champion N’Golo Kanté. He may have just returned from injury but he didn’t skip a beat. He was energetic as always, made space for himself to receive the ball and link up with his teammates, tracked back defensively, and most importantly, allowed his midfield partners Jorginho and Kovacic to breathe and play their game with less pressure. To top it off, he scored the Blues’ second, via a major deflection, which made the Spurs’ unlikely comeback even more difficult.
If Kanté stays fit and healthy, he could be the difference in helping Chelsea winning major trophies on multiple fronts this season.
4. Chelsea overcome a sluggish start
As mentioned, Tottenham started off the game with a strong level of intensity that was befitting of a local London derby. Following the humbling they received against fellow London rivals Crystal Palace, it would have been easy and understandable for Spurs to be extra cautious and nervous when starting the match, especially against their more illustrious opponents. But to their credit, they approached this contest with a courageous mindset and really gave it their best to take it to the European Champions and show that their bright start to the season was fully justified and not due to good fortune.
Speaking of fortune, the Blues were fortunate that they possess a supremely well-drilled defensive unit to be able to withstand early onslaughts which they have had to demonstrate already a few times this season. It is this solid foundation at the back that enables Chelsea to ride their luck and ease their way into games as they approach each clash knowing that they have faith and trust in their ability to keep teams from breaching their goal and therefore do not feel pressure to score early.
As was demonstrated in the second half, Tuchel’s men have the ability to quickly pivot and become an extremely difficult team to contain. Going forward, the task at hand will be on converting their dominance into more sustained periods throughout the match, particularly from the start.
5. Unlikely goal scorers gives Chelsea an added dimension
All the talk before the game was on how many goals and assists Romelu Lukaku would score against Spurs following their ‘disasterclass’ against Viera’s Eagles. As it turned out, neither the prolific Belgian striker or his attacking partners Havertz and Mount would contribute any goals on this occasion.
While the Blues did a wonderful job in asserting their dominance against Nuno’s men in the second half, Tuchel would be somewhat frustrated that his front three did not quite click, although the second half saw an increased level of threat posed by the Blues frontmen. On a thematic level, there is still some refinements to be made in terms of finding the optimal solution in Chelsea’s attack, including identifying the most suitable partners for Lukaku.
Although there are many games and different types of opponents to overcome, establishing a consistent attacking partnership will improve Chelsea’s chances of being more effective in front of goals. Given the plethora of attacking talent at Tuchel’s disposal, watching this evolution, including the combinations explored, over the next handful of games will be very intriguing.
However, in terms of this game, it was two experienced defenders (Silva and Rudiger) and a central midfielder (Kanté) who propelled the Blues to victory and placed them at the top of the Premier League summit by the end of the Match Week.
Notwithstanding there is a preference to have the attacking players consistently deliver the goals for a side as that is their main contribution to the team, there is also an element of comfort that the Blues attacking threat is not limited to specific players or positions.
Further, having a diversified base of goal scoring capability gives Chelsea an extra dimension to their game as it strikes fear into their opponent that the Blues can rely upon on a number of their talented stars to step up and add a crucial goal when needed. This makes the Blues even more difficult to suppress given the opposition will be reluctant to over commit too many players on a certain Blues player/s as it could leave them exposed elsewhere.
Per BBC, Chelsea have had 10 different goal scorers so far this season which makes them incredibly versatile and dangerous, and, also alleviates the pressure and expectation on their attacking stars. Should the Blues keep up this trend, they will give themselves every chance of achieving great success this season.
Final Comments
A 3-0 win against a fierce London rival in their own backyard is always something worth celebrating. While it was a classic case of ‘a tale of two halves’ in terms of how different the ebb and flow of the game went for both sides, Tuchel will be extremely satisfied with the response shown by his troops in that second half.
Equally, he would have been disappointed that they started off in the passive manner they did and had to rely on him to point this out to them at the break. Despite sitting on top of the league, starting off games in a more proactive and purposeful way will be a priority for Tuchel and his Blues, especially given the mammoth set of clashes around the corner.
However, there were many positives to come from this important contest, both psychologically and tangibly in terms of performance and end result.
Having already faced fellow title contenders Liverpool and earning a respectable point (with 10 men) at Anfield, and beating both Arsenal and Tottenham away without conceding to now be sitting top of the Premier League is something to be proud of at this stage.
Should the Blues successfully navigate the next few weeks, including the blockbuster clash against Manchester City, this could very well be the stepping stone to seeing Chelsea cement themselves as not only serious contenders but genuine title favourites. However, and as NFL Head Coach for the New England Patriots Bill Belichick famously said, ‘one game at a time.
Until then, let’s enjoy this fantastic victory against our old and bitter London rivals!
Come on you Blues!
Twitter: @RJ_Goodthings
