Premier League: Spurs Aiming to Break Chelsea Dominance

Chelsea vs Tottenham Hotspur

Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur meet in a London blockbuster on Sunday, both hoping to build on a perfect start to the 2022/23 Premier League campaign.

Thomas Tuchel’s Blues eked out a highly professional 1-0 win away to Everton last weekend while Antonio Conte’s Spurs swept Southampton aside with a 4-1 win at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

This game is the perfect opportunity for each team to set down a marker as the most serious challengers to the North West dominance of the Premier League. If the 2022/23 title trace is to be anything other than a Manchester City/Liverpool tussle then it will fall to Chelsea or Tottenham, or maybe Arsenal, to stake their claim.

But Tottenham have had little success against Chelsea recently, losing five and drawing one of the last six meetings.

Talking Points

Chilwell so crucial for Chelsea

Chelsea’s opening day win was a triumph for the Blues in many ways, but one of the brightest moments for their fans was seeing left wing-back Ben Chilwell make a first appearance since he injured his cruciate ligament back in November.

While Tuchel has a deep squad to call on, the loss of the England man was harshly felt as, not only is he a top class defender, he also has a superb delivery in attack.       

After a turbulent time off the pitch, the return of Chilwell was just the sort of Premier League 2022 news Thomas Tuchel wanted to give to the fans, and he put in a good, strong hour against the Toffees – later joking that it was an exhausting experience after being sidelined for so long.

With England colleague Reece James raiding down the right flank, Tuchel has a pair of assist-making wing-backs to rival the partnership of Trent Alexander-Arnold and Andrew Robertson at Liverpool.

Chilwell made his mark at Goodison Park with a bursting run into the penalty area to win a penalty when Abdoulaye Doucoure hauled him down and Jorginho duly dispatched the spot-kick to give Chelsea a winning start.    

New boys Kalidou Koulibaly and Raheem Sterling both had excellent debuts as Koulibaly looking ready made for the hustle and bustle of defending in the English league, while Sterling presented the biggest threat up front.  

Kulusevski can be at his best with Tottenham

An open day clash at home to Southampton turned out to be a rout for Tottenham as they came back from a goal deficit to win 4-1, and the curious thing was, neither Harry Kane nor Heung-Min Son were on the score sheet.

The South Korean star made an assist, but the rest of the goalmouth action came from elsewhere, and attacking midfielder Dejan Kulusevski was in on the act with a superb curling finish to make it 4-1.

The flying Swede made a big impression on his arrival from Juventus last January at the start of an 18-month loan agreement, and Spurs will surely activate their option to buy if he continues in the same form.

With five goals and eight assists in 18 matches last season, Kulusevski has already justified the €10-M loan deal and the additional fee of €35-M could represent good value for the North London club. 

Conte started the match against the Saints without any of his summer signings and he was proved right again with such an emphatic outcome.

But Ivan Perisic, Clement Lenglet, and Yves Bissouma could all soon make an appearance while Richarlison is completing his suspension earned at the end of last season when he was still an Everton player.        

History

Chelsea have been dominant in their relationship with Tottenham in the Premier League era, winning 39 and drawing 21 of the 70 meetings since 1993, while Spurs have managed just 10 victories.

The Blues have won the last four, including the two legs of the 2022 Carabao Cup semi-final and a 2-0 home win in the Premier League back in January as Hakim Ziyech and Thiago Silva were both on target.    

Both teams have won four of the last six and come into this game in good shape. 

Betting Tip

The latest Premier League 2022 betting odds have Tottenham and Chelsea at 12.00 and 18.00 respectively to win the title, and that puts them clearly in third and fourth positions. And this game has the potential to confirm that order or switch the two teams around.  

This match is in the balance with the Blues favourites at SBOTOP odds of 2.21 while Tottenham are at 3.06 to take all three points home. In the end, though, I’m backing for a draw here.

 

●●●

CHECK OUT OUR BLOG FOR MORE FOOTBALL STORIES & ODDS

Stay updated with everything sports and betting.

Follow us on social Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.