In a furious London derby, Chelsea rallied from a two-goal deficit after 11 minutes to defeat Tottenham Hotspur 4-3 on the road and narrow the gap with Premier League leaders Liverpool on Sunday. Cole Palmer scored twice from the penalty spot.
Early Struggles and Tottenham Bright Start
Following two hilarious blunders by Chelsea full-back Marc Cucurella, Dominic Solanke and Dejan Kulusevski gave the home team a fantastic start. However, their happiness quickly turned to sadness as the visitors demonstrated why they should be regarded as title contenders.
Sancho and Palmer Turn the Tide
After 17 minutes, Jadon Sancho fired in a goal to give Chelsea the lead, and just after the hour, Palmer equalised from the penalty spot as Chelsea dominated the second half.
Before Son Heung-min scored a consolation goal in stoppage time, Palmer successfully sealed the victory with his second penalty late on, and Enzo Fernandez hammered home a shot to give Chelsea the lead.
Chelsea Climb in the Premier League
With 31 points from 15 games, Chelsea is in second place, four points behind Liverpool, whose match against Everton was postponed due to strong winds on Saturday.
Tottenham’s second loss of the week dropped them to 11th place with 20 points, and manager Ange Postecoglou was under increasing pressure, especially after centre back Cristian Romero was injured early in the game.
Postecoglou and Maresca React
It’s painful, so it’s definitely a sore one. The Australian, whose team has lost twice after leading 2-0 this season, told Sky Sports, “We had to reshuffle after losing Cristian Romero after we started the game really well.”
It was not long before the momentum changed.
Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca has downplayed the team’s chances of winning the championship, despite the fact that they have won their last four Premier League games and are now undefeated in seven games. With 35 goals, they lead the division in scoring as well, and Palmer has a player at the top of his game.
Cole Palmer Exceptional Form
He joined the London club from Manchester City and has since contributed 50 goals (33 goals and 17 assists) in 48 Premier League games.
We gave up two easy goals in the first ten or fifteen minutes, but overall, we controlled the game, according to Italian Maresca. Both on and off the ball, the players’ responses were mentally tough.
Early Setbacks for Chelsea
Early in the game, a crashing Cucurella was twice left red-faced, giving the visitors a bad impression.
In the fifth minute, he lost his footing, and Brennan Johnson played the ball into the area after Solanke gave his team the lead with a poacher’s finish.
The same thing occurred minutes later, but this time the Spaniard slipped over and watched in horror as Kulusevski eventually cut across the pitch and threaded a precise shot past Emiliano Sanchez.
Chelsea Resilience
Cucurella left to change his shoes, but his team’s luck soon changed as well, with Sancho scoring a fantastic shot off the post following a strong diagonal run.
Moises Caicedo’s follow-through on Pape Matar Sarr and Sarr’s subsequent header against the woodwork may have saved Chelsea from being reduced to ten men.
Palmer Decisive Role
In the second half, Tottenham was still ahead, but Yves Bissouma’s careless challenge on Caicedo resulted in a blatant penalty, and Palmer defeated Fraser Forster.
Son came close as the home team made a brief comeback, but Fernandez put Chelsea ahead in the 73rd minute following a crazy dribble by the unstoppable Palmer.
After being taken down by Sarr, Palmer scored a bold ‘Panenka’ penalty to cap off a fantastic afternoon.
Son’s tap-in was little comfort to Tottenham, who also lost Micky van de Ven, Romero’s defensive partner, to injury in the closing minutes.
Holabet News is your trusted online betting site in Singapore. Your winning journey starts here!