In a clash that promises to be one of the most thrilling London derbies of the season so far, Premier League giants Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur are set to face off at Stamford Bridge today afternoon. While the Blues suffered a gutting defeat to Manchester United in the league last time out, Spurs’ most recent fixture saw them losing 1-0 to German side Leipzig in the Champions League.
Chelsea haven’t been in the best run of form over recent weeks but will take confidence from the fact that Lampard’s men were able to perform a miracle during the reverse fixture not too long ago. Also, the fact that the Blues have to keep one eye on their European clash against Bayern Munich midweek could spell further bad news for the manager.
The two London rivals are separated on the league table by a mere point, with Chelsea currently edging Jose Mourinho’s side into fourth place. While a win would give them a little bit of breathing space, at least with regard to Spurs, a defeat could make things extremely tricky for Lampard in the coming weeks. With just seven points between Chelsea and Burnley in 11th, this could turn out to be a must-win game for the Blues.
What Lampard Needs To Do For Chelsea To Beat Tottenham Hotspur Today
Bench Mason Mount
For all the good displays that the young attacking-midfielder put up in the opening weeks, Mount just doesn’t seem to have developed the cutting edge required to flourish in the Premier League. The youngster’s recent outings have all been below average, and it’s starting to become too easy for teams to neutralise his attacking threat. The defeat against United was a perfect example of the alarming lack of conviction Mount has begun to display over recent games.
Bring Tammy Back At Any Cost
Although it is bound to be branded as a smart move later in the year, Lampard’s decision to keep Tammy out of last weekend’s match-day squad did have a negative effect. While it can be argued that the youngster has been overplayed this season, the fact that Michy Batshuayi doesn’t offer any attacking quality could force Lampard to bring Abraham back for this fixture, irrespective of any lingering injury troubles.
Overload The Midfield
Lampard’s idea of deploying three players across the midfield area would’ve probably worked out a lot better for them last week had Kante not picked up an injury less than fifteen minutes into the tie. The gaffer chose to replace the Frenchman with Mount, in a move that would end up costing them dearly. The introduction of Barkley, alongside Jorginho and Kovacic, could’ve been just what this Chelsea team needed. Lampard will do well to identify that and stick with the aforementioned three-man midfield line.
