Dele Alli and Christian Eriksen helped Tottenham Hotspur complete a stunning comeback to beat Chelsea at Stamford Bridge for the first time in 28 years.
Chelsea were humiliated by a well drilled and disciplined Tottenham Hotspur side at Stamford Bridge on Sunday. Dele Alli and Christian Eriksen ensured that Maurcio Pochettino became the first manager to inflict defeat on the Blues at the SW6 since 1990.
It all seemed to be going Chelsea’s way in the first half and after Alvaro Morata opened the scoring in the 29th minute, it looked like the hosts were on their way to a much needed victory. However, a thunderbolt from Christian Eriksen just before the break allowed Tottenham to take the momentum into the break.
Spurs picked up from where they had left off in the second half. Dele Alli gave them the lead in the 62nd minute after capitalizing on a sleeping Chelsea defence and six minutes later, he put the game to bed after taking advantage of a scramble in the Chelsea six-yard box to round off the win.
Willy Caballero: 6
Had to pick the ball out of the back of his net far more than he’s been used to in his Chelsea career. Could do nothing for the first goal, should have done better for the second and his defence was completely to blame for the third. Did, however, make three other saves, most notably to keep out a curling effort from Son Heung-Min.
Cesar Azpilicueta: 5
Was at fault for the second and third Tottenham goals. Failed to pick up Alli’s presence on both occasions. Didn’t make a lot of mistakes, but the only two times he was caught off guard, Spurs capitalized and took advantage.
Andreas Christensen: 5
Didn’t seem the same after Dele Alli’s first goal of the evening. Was involved in conceding both goals. Has been really awkward in recent weeks and this performance won’t do any good for his confidence.
Antonio Rudiger: 5
Played a crucial role in the build up to Chelsea’s goal after he found Victor Moses well with a cross field pass. Let Son get the better of him in the build up to the second goal. Besides that, gave away little defensively and it was an otherwise decent performance.
Victor Moses: 5
Sent in a pinpoint cross for Morata to score the opener, but that was the extent of his contribution. Found it difficult on that right flank and wasn’t at his best defensively. Gave away possession for Spurs’ equalizer and it was all downhill after that.
N’Golo Kante: 8
The Frenchman was once again, the best Chelsea player. Had to work extra hard to try and nullify the threat of the Spurs midfield. Tried to be everyone at once, but couldn’t prevent any of the three goals. Could have perhaps closed down Eriksen fast enough for the first goal. With 6 interceptions and 5 tackles, it was a solid shift from Chelsea’s midfield dynamo yet again.
Cesc Fabregas: 6
Did fairly well in midfield and put in a good defensive shift as well. Played some good passes out to his teammates, but not all of his crosses met their mark. Dembele and Dier didn’t make things any easier on him and unfortunately for him, he couldn’t score or get an assist for his side. He is still on 49 Premier League goals.
Marcos Alonso: 5
Got into some good positions over the course of the game and combined well with his teammates going forward, but couldn’t make anything of those opportunities. Had a goal rightly ruled out to be offside. Was a part of the mix up that helped Dele Alli slot home the second.
Willian: 6
Chelsea’s most in-form attacking player going into this clash, the Brazilian failed to make any sort of impact at the Bridge. Moved the ball around well enough with his teammates and linked up well, but just couldn’t help them find a way past a resilient Spurs defence.
Alvaro Morata: 8
A top class header aside, it wasn’t the best performance from the Spaniard. He’s still clearly getting back to form, but he could’ve done better off the ball. He wasn’t lacking effort, but then as the game went on his hold up play wasn’t up to the mark.
The lack of service didn’t help either and Morata completely faded out in the second half. That goal takes his tally to 13 goals and 5 assists in 39 appearances this season.
Eden Hazard: 6
Spurs did a wonderful job of keeping the Belgian quiet the entire evening. Hazard got into some good positions and took on a number of Tottenham’s players with his usual gusto, completing 4 of his 5 take-ons. But, he saw too little of the ball for large portions of the game.
On the few occasions Hazard did find himself in possession, he lacked the end product so desperately required. His usual spark was clearly missing tonight and perhaps. if he would’ve been a bit more selfish on the ball, he could’ve made some sort of an impact on the scoreline.
