Match Day Thread Tottenham Hotspur v Chelsea

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Sunday 19th September 4.30pm
Premier League
Tottenham Hotspur Stadium​

We're off the back of another poor European performance and we're facing a very tough league game.
Chelsea are one of the favourites for the title this season and they've started the campaign showing why.
Our pre-season match against them may have ended in a draw, but we were played off the park for most of it.
An injury crisis and some late arrivals also complicate things.
Can Espirito Santo pull out another City-style win or will the expected happen?

I think we all know how Chelsea's season went last time out, so I won't bother going into it.
Spend lots of money, sack a club legend, blah, blah, blah.

This tie was decided by a penalty last season and one that Mourinho wasn't very happy about.
It was soft, but it was also a stupid decision by Dier.
A negative performance overall probably got what it deserved:

The reverse fixture came earlier on in the campaign and it was a boring and tedious affair.
Both sides were very wary of the opposition and spent a lot of time and effort trying to keep a clean sheet.
It worked for them, unfortunately:

Romero, Sanchez and Lo Celso are supposed to be back for this one.
There are big doubts over Son, Bergwijn, Moura, Dier and Sessegnon, while Tanganga is suspended.
Pulisic is the visitors only injury.

Lineups for each side's last league game:

Spurs: Lloris; Royal, Tanganga, Dier, Reguilon; Hojbjerg, Skipp, Winks; Moura, Kane, Alli.
Subs: Gollini, Doherty, Rodon, Omole, Davies, Ndombele, Markanday, Gil, Scarlett.

Chelsea: Mendy; Chalobah, Rudiger, Silva; Hudson-Odoi, Niguez, Kovacic, Alonso; Havertz, Ziyech; Lukaku.
Subs: Kepa, Azpilicueta, Christensen, Chilwell, Jorginho, Barkley, Loftus-Cheek, Mount, Werner.

Ref: Paul "Kieran's dad" Tierney. VAR: Chris Kavanagh.

TV: Sky Sports.

How would you like to line up for this one?
Would you stick with much of the same lineup from the Rennes game, tinker a little or change it completely?
Which system and tactics would you use and what are you expecting Chelsea to go with?

 

Would rather we just give them the three points and move on.

Will be a long, boring and painful match for us.

Lukaku will bully Dier and Sanchez and we will be run off our feet in midfield.

 

Doubt he'll play. Probably injured.

 

Ahhhh...our luck is charging

 

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Can't see us getting much out of the game, I think Chelsea are the best team in the league right now, I still think City's star quality will get them over the line for the title but Chelsea just have good players all over the pitch and the depth to match. They're well drilled, efficient both at the front and back and their midfield now has Kante back from injury so that's just great...

Feels a little impossible to predict the team what with injuries and late returns but I'm half expecting us to go with a back five, a four man midfield of Skipp, Hojbjerg, Winks and Dele with Kane on his own up top isolated yet again.

 

Clearly Chelsea are the best team in the league right now with quality to spare throughout the team AND on the bench. Top football is all about the money. Spurs on the other hand look disjointed and devoid of football nouce. Ravaged by injury and covid regulations and one of the worlds top strikers who doesn't want to be there.

Based on all that I have predicted a Spurs win.

 

Going out today to buy a new sofa with a high back to hide behind...
Impossible to see us creating so much as a chance and the Chavs are flying
Said the other night that this would be a long season. Sunday afternoon is going to be a feckin' eternity I fear.

 

Opening the cave at 10.00am tomorrow for anyone who wants to book the early bird special on a full english breakfast.

Over the summer I installed a huge 4K screen that plays highlights from the Ajax game on a loop for 90 minutes. So you can sit back, relax, drop your phone in the sea and be left blissfully unaware of the fact that we're 4-0 down and Hojbjerg has just been shown a red for poking Tierney in the eye while shouting "you blind pillock" in his face.

 

Oh good, the Lunatic Fringe are already turning on Skipp because they have decided that defensive midfielders are the spawn of Beelzebub

Unless the ubermensch wanted to play them, then they're marvelous and we need more of them

Good to see agendas combining to show them up as moronic malcontents who have no clue what they're yelling about...

 

My youngest moved out today to go to Uni.
So proud of her for making it through some difficult moments over the last few years but it's been a **** day leaving her.
At least spurs can't ruin an already ****ed up weekend.

 

Tomorrow, I'm taking my step-mum out to lunch before she goes into hospital on Tuesday. It's bit of a relief to have something else to do...

 

You're more than welcome to bring her to the cave for our lunch buffet featuring lots of bottles, humble pie, sour grapes and a delicious little quiche our chef created recently. He uses tears instead of salt.

 

Will there be a selection of tripe from 'certain quarters'?

 

This is my team for tomorrow if Dier is fit, if not then stick in Romero alongside Sanchez.

Lloris, Emerson, Sanchez, Dier, Reguilon; Hojberg, Skipp, Alli; Lucas, Kane, Son

 

Big congrats to you and your family, matey! I know what that means to you!

 

Tottenham Hotspur: Hold my beer.

 

The genuine negativity on here makes for some top notch RCL’s. Great work everyone.

CK, I’ll be joining you at 10. You had me at “full English breakfast”.


I genuinely can’t see anything other than a defeat.
We can’t even get out of our own half to have a few shots at goal, so there’s no way we’re containing Chelsea for 90 mins.
Can’t wait for Hojbjerg, Skipp and Winks to line up across midfield, such a wonderful view.

 

That's brilliant Colin, I am taking my youngest to Bournemouth today to start his university life. It's certainly going to be quiet at home without him.