[ad_pod ]Chelsea defeated Tottenham 2-0 at Stamford Bridge on Wednesday, as Maurizio Sarri’s men bounced back from the disappointment of their Carabao Cup final penalty shootout defeat to Manchester City.The performance was one of fire and brimstone, with the Blues setting up to play at a high tempo, while also looking to limit the chances created by Spurs.A low block was set up which stifled the attack of Mauricio Pochettino’s men, with Harry Kane, still apparently half-fit, forced to drop deeper and deeper in search of the ball.Indeed, per Opta, Spurs did not manage a single shot on target for the first time under Pochettino’s management.
The stat is all the more remarkable when one considers that, at Wembley, Tottenham ran riot, beating Chelsea 3-1 and having nine shots on target. Clearly, Sarri has learned some lessons since then.
Spurs marginally shaded the possession at Stamford Bridge, but their slow, methodical build-up ultimately played into Chelsea’s hands, with the Blues favouring quick bursts in attack.
Due to their sluggishness on the transition, Pochettino’s men could not find a way through Chelsea and failed to create a truly clear-cut chance.
Per WhoScored, Spurs had 546 passes compared to 480 for the home side, while the Blues were forced into 15 blocks and 37 tackles. It is hard to feel that this was not by design.
Pedro, playing on the right flank, embodied this strategy, routinely collecting the ball from deep and sprinting at the Spurs defence, with a similar passage of play resulting in Chelsea’s first goal.
Cesar Azpilicueta took the ball in on the halfway line and surged forward, playing in Pedro, who beat Toby Alderweireld and fired between Hugo Lloris’ legs.
Spurs, of course, did not help themselves. Their performance after going a goal down was one of desperation; Pochettino threw on Fernando Llorente, abandoning his 4-2-3-1 formation in favour of moving two up top. Son Heung-Min was subsequently shunted out wide, and the South Korea international’s influence waned as a result.
Kane, meanwhile, began dropping even deeper, to accommodate the aerial threat posed by the Spaniard.
It didn’t work – Chelsea were well-equipped to deal with an aerial bombardment and did so with aplomb, before Kieran Trippier and Lloris conspired to kill Spurs’ hopes stone dead.
After a long ball forward, there appeared little danger as Trippier looked to play the ball back to his goalkeeper. Lloris, however, had charged out of his area in an attempt to sweep up, and the England international simply passed the ball into the back of his own net.
It is difficult, of course, to account for such monumental stupidity from two seasoned professionals but Pochettino’s tactics from the start failed to take advantage of the tiredness in Chelsea’s legs.
Whereas at Wembley, Spurs were at full throttle and took the Blues by surprise, this was the opposite.
Watching on, few would have been forgiven for thinking it was Spurs who played 120 minutes of football on Saturday; Sarri, ultimately, masked those flaws with clever planning, a low defensive block and explosive phases of attacking play.
Spurs had no answer, and are now surely out of the title race.