Prediction: Tottenham vs Chelsea

11th December 2010

Tottenham missed a great chance to win their fourth successive Premier League game as they were held by a late goal at St Andrew’s but Spurs, nonetheless, believe they can beat out-of-form Chelsea and thus join the title chase. The Blues, too, were held to a draw by conceding a late goal to Everton and there is no need saying this is a must-win game for them.

Tottenham broke the curse last season by clinching the fourth-place finish and qualifying to the Champions League, but Spurs didn’t want to stop there. They continued playing entertaining football this season and kept recording great results in both Premiership and Champions League, making numerous football experts tip them to even join the title race this season. Following the victories over Inter, Arsenal and Liverpool and judging by the manner in which they were achieved, I am definitely not prepared to rule out Spurs from the title race or to say they cannot beat Chelsea. One thing I was really impressed by this season is the fact that Spurs played well even without their key players who were often (some of them still are) on the sidelines, and that speaks volumes about the character of this side. Spurs were unlucky to end their winning streak against Birmingham but I honestly believe they can continue their five-match unbeaten run against Chelsea at White Hart Lane and maybe even sneak out a win, despite the fact that O’Hara, van der Vaart, Kranjcar, King, Woodgate, Jenas and Huddlestone remain sidelined.

Chelsea are in pieces at the moment and they cannot seem to return to form that served them so well in the opening rounds of the season. Not too many people could expect such a downfall following the impressive showings in the first 10 Premiership rounds but the Blues are clearly going through a rough patch, having won only once in last six games, and they are in desperate need of a morale-boosting win. The first opportunity for that was squandered last weekend when they allowed Everton to escape Stamford Bridge with one point and now Chelsea are in real danger of ruining their title bid. The Champions League defeat to Marseille did little to improve the situation, so the visitors will certainly be under tremendous pressure at the Lane when facing in-form Tottenham. With Alex, Lampard, Bosingwa, Benayoun and Zhirkov still on the sidelines, Carlo Ancelotti will be forced to tinker with his formation and that is obviously rarely a good thing.

Conclusion

There is no doubt this is going to be a very close game between two great teams, but looking at the current form and attacking flair one cannot help but back Tottenham to pull off another surprise. Even Carlo Ancelotti said he considered Tottenham the favourites in this clash and maybe his predictions will prove right.

Verdict: Home win Tottenham (1)

Best Odds: 2/1

Bookmaker: Victor Chandler