Chelsea v Tottenham, Premier League
16:00, Sunday 1st April, Stamford Bridge
TV/Radio
The match will conclude this weekend’s Premier League action on Easter Sunday and will be shown live on Sky Sports Main Event. Radio commentary on the game can be found at BBC Five Live and BBC Radio London.
What’s At Stake?
Spurs are currently fourth in the Premier League, with a five point lead over fifth placed Chelsea. An away win would therefore stretch that lead to eight points and all but ensure qualification for next season’s Champions League, while a defeat would cut the gap to just two points and reignite Chelsea’s aspirations of finishing in the top four.
There’s also the little matter of Tottenham having the chance to end their terrible run of form at Stamford Bridge, where the club have not won since 1990.
Team News
Harry Kane looks certain to miss out as he continues to recover from his ankle injury. Other doubts include Harry Winks, who withdrew from the England U21 squad and Victor Wanyama, who missed Kenya’s game on Tuesday night with a knee injury.
One player who may return fitter from the international break than when he departed, is Toby Alderweireld. The Belgian international played the full 90 minutes in his country’s 4-0 win over Saudi Arabia this week.
For Chelsea, Ross Barkley and David Luiz are both out, while Andreas Christensen and Thibaut Courtois face fitness tests.
Form
Spurs’ defeat in the Champions League to Juventus was their sole loss in the last 20 games. Half of these have been played away from home, from which Tottenham are unbeaten, drawing five and winning five.
In contrast, Chelsea are in erratic form considering their normal high standards. Their last twelve matches have seen them lose six times, though only one of those losses came at Stamford Bridge.
Referee
Andre Marriner will officiate. The 47-year old has been something of a lucky omen for Spurs in recent times, with the team unbeaten in the last eight games in which Marriner has refereed.
However, on the one and only occasion that Marriner took charge of a match between Chelsea and Tottenham, it was the Blues that claimed victory. In 2011, Chelsea went behind at home, but fought back to win 2-1 with Salomon Kalou scoring the winner in the 89th minute.
Betting
Chelsea are the 2.45 favourites, with Spurs at 3.10 and the draw out at 3.40. If you fancy Tottenham to avoid defeat, take the odds of 1.60 available at Unibet in the Double Chance market.
The best value bet could be for Both Teams To Score at 1.76. Chelsea have not kept a clean sheet in six games.
History
As mentioned, Tottenham have not won at Stamford Bridge since 1990, when a late Gary Lineker goal secured a 2-0 win. Since then Spurs have played at the ground on 30 occasions without tasting victory.
Chelsea beat Tottenham in the reverse fixture earlier this season. Since Mauricio Pochettino took charge at Spurs, the team have beaten Chelsea twice, drawing twice and losing five times.
