Antonio Conte suffered yet another humiliating defeat as he now stands as the first manager to lose to Tottenham Hotspur at Stamford Bridge since the inception of the Premier League. In a crucial game for the race to the top-4, Chelsea were given the lead early in the game, thanks to Alvaro Morata but they did not do enough to keep Spurs quite, who managed to put three past Willy Caballero, who was covering for Thibaut Courtois’ injury.
Christian Eriksen’s unstoppable strike saw Spurs go into the break on level terms and Chelsea did not seem to show up in the second half as they failed to test Hugo Lloris at one end and gave away a four-minute brace to Dele Alli, to block all their lanes to victory. They are now 8 points behind Spurs and 10 behind Liverpool with a game in hand and have no room for error anymore this season. Here are the player ratings for the Blues in this tie:
Willy Caballero (5):
Could have done nothing the to stop Dele Alli but had enough time to deal with Eriksen, who did time his striker sweetly.
Cesar Azpilicueta (5):
Was at fault for Alli’s first and was not his usual self, lending no strength to the backline.
Andreas Christensen (4):
Made a couple of errors that cost his side in the long term and was just not able to find a foot-hole in the game.
Antonio Rudiger (6):
Chelsea’s best defender, Rudiger, not only dealt with attacks from his side but was also productive with his passing.
Victor Moses (6):
Lacked the defensive discipline needed against a side like Spurs but put in the ball that gave Morata his early goal.
Cesc Fabregas (4):
Lethargic and poor as he failed to complete many of his passes, inviting pressure on to his teammates.
N Golo Kante (7):
His work rate kept Chelsea in the game. He was quick to snuff out attacks and also ventured forward on times to test Lloris.
Marcos Alonso (5):
Was wrong in his decision making more often than not and broke down too many of Chelsea’s promising attacks.
Eden Hazard (5):
Was not given too much space or time the on the ball and though he looked a danger whenever he had the ball at his feet, failed to come up with the final ball
Willian (5):
Took too many shots but rarely tested Lloris and did not provide enough width in the attack when needed.
Alvaro Morata (6):
Smart header to open the scoring and had loads of space but did not get enough service for his liking.
Subs:
Olivier Giroud (N/A)
Emerson Palmieri (N/A)
Callum Hudson-Odoi (N/A)
