Chelsea vs Tottenham – Top 5 moments (2011-2021)
Guest Post by RJ - FREE for all!
We had him on the Podcast recently, and now he has come at us with his first guest post for Si & Dan Talk Chelsea.
Top Chelsea Content Creator, RJ_Goodthings, has written the below as a guest article for us… Enjoy!
Chelsea are set to lock horns with bitter London rivals Tottenham at Stamford Bridge on 5 January 2022 in the first leg of the EFL Cup semi-final. In addition to trying to establish an advantage for a place at Wembley, the game itself always produces entertaining viewing given the two teams have solidified their frosty relationship in recent seasons, much to our utter enjoyment!
The Blues continue to taunt their ‘rivals’ by showing them what success looks like over the past two decades, both domestically and in Europe, and repeatedly remind them (and all other London clubs) what colour London is. Hint: it is not white or red!
This bubbling rivalry has only been amplified by the fact former Blues manager Antonio Conte is now in the Spurs dugout and will no doubt be very keen to try and get one over his former employers in a high-stakes affair. For the record, Conte has proven pedigree wherever he has managed and has already had a positive influence on Spurs in a short space of time and therefore Tottenham will be a team that should be closely monitored and painfully I say, respected (not feared).
To prepare for the next instalment in this simmering rivalry, below is a stroll down three-point memory lane over the past decade which includes my most treasured memories as a Blues fan getting one over Tottenham. Long may our successful run and dominance over them continue!
My top 5 moments:
#5 – Lampard’s Chelsea does the double over Mourinho’s Spurs in 2019/20
This is the most recent of my top 5 memories. Who could forget the narrative that surrounded the first clash between master & apprentice, the two who had achieved so much success together at Chelsea, who would be on opposing sides in a London derby! As it turned out, ‘Super Frank’ Lampard and his Blues secured an impressive 2-0 win over the Special One’s Spurs via a Willian brace. The first was a superb curling effort into the bottom corner from a clever short corner routine, the second a calmly slotted penalty.
The match itself also included the customary controversy that accompanies a Spurs v Blues clash i.e. a VAR-induced penalty for Chelsea’s second, as well as a sending-off of Son for his karate kick to the mid-section of Antonio Rudiger who was also shamefully subjected to some awful racist abuse. The highlight though was seeing Frank celebrating emphatically with the travelling away fans. Willian’s penalty (2nd goal) was Chelsea’s 100th against Spurs and this was also Mourinho’s first home loss against a team he had previously managed.
The second was an exciting contest on a bright, sunny day at Stamford Bridge. In addition to two cracking goals from Giroud in the first half and Alonso in the second, Alonso hit the woodwork with a sublime free-kick, and the match also was feisty at times at Tottenham tried to unsettle the home side with some nasty challenges, namely from Giovanni Lo Celso who stood on Cesar Azplicueta’s lower leg which the VAR strangely did warrant a send-off (only later to admit they made a mistake, sounds familiar!).
#4 –Terry winds back the clock to inspire Blues to sink Spurs at Wembley for EFL Cup Crown in 2015
As the saying goes: ‘Age is just a number’. On the day Mourinho’s Chelsea did battle with Pochettino’s Tottenham, the veteran defender and oldest player on the pitch, truly led by example. Not only was he vitally important in his helping his side weather an early onslaught from Spurs, but he took matters into his own hands (or foot on this occasion) as he smartly waited for a clearing header from a free-kick and made the decisive contact to force his shot, via a kind deflection, to
open up the scoring for the Blues on the stroke of half-time. In the second half, while Costa doubled our lead (again by a fortuitous deflection), Terry’s tremendous all-round performance was typified in the 87th minute with his courageous block on Harry Kane to ensure the Blues would not need to withstand a final push from the perennial trophy chasers.
A true leader-by-example display from Chelsea’s Captain. Leader. Legend.
#3 – The Battle of the Bridge 2016 which ended Spurs’ title hopes
Arguably my top pick given the magnitude of the game and the associated set of events that took place in it. No one will ever forget the infamous and notorious ‘Battle of the Bridge’ that took place on May 2, 2016!
This was a game that not only Chelsea and Tottenham fans had an interest in, but all supporters of the Premier League. Casting your mind back, the situation was that Spurs needed to win this match to keep their slim title hopes alive against the neutral’s favourites Leicester who had been brilliant that season under former Blues manager Claudio Ranieri. After taking an early 2-0 lead, things were going according to plan as Tottenham’s heavy-hitters Kane and Son set Spurs on their way to a hugely important win, or so it seemed.
Then, in the typical Chelsea-of-old character, the Blues rallied together in the second half and gave Blues fans a performance to be truly proud of. The comeback started when Cahill expertly smashed in from close range before the Belgian maestro Hazard finished off a classy move involving an exchange with himself and Costa as his first-time effort curled into the top corner to send Stamford Bridge into pandemonium! Notwithstanding the end-to-end action, the game was also plenty of fighting spirit which risked boiling over at several points that added to the spectacle and enormity of this clash. In the end, it was a pulsating 2-2 draw that felt like a win given the come-from-behind nature of it against a bitter rival which also had the bonus of ensuring we would be the only London team to be Premier League champions since 2003/04.
#2 – Matic piledriver in thrilling FA Cup Semi-Final in 2017
Who could forget this end-to-end clash? Chelsea lead, Tottenham level, Chelsea re-take the lead, Tottenham re-equalise, this game was on a knife’s edge! Then, in a space of 5 minutes, Chelsea’s magical marvel Eden Hazard broke the deadlock for the Blues for a third time in the match with a splendid low drive before the moment-of-the-match (which Kurt Zouma’s reaction to it is still iconic to this day) came from the unlikeliest of sources.
In a nice little exchange between Hazard, Moses, Fabregas and then Hazard to lay it off for an absolute 30-yard thunderous piledriver from Matic that crashed in off the top right-hand corner of the crossbar to give Chelsea an unassailable lead and a ticket into the FA Cup Final. A truly glorious moment in a tantalising Wembley affair which involved some top-shelf goals throughout!
#1 – Chelsea’s 5-1 destruction of Spurs in FA Cup Semi-Final in 2012
Speaking of Wembley, it is only fitting to round-off my top 5 moments from a match stretching back almost 10 years ago.
This game had a little bit of everything! It had 5 stunning goals from the Blues, them being: a trademark thunderbolt from King Didier Drogba to open the account; a goal-line scramble which upon review may have been harsh on Tottenham as the ball ‘may’ not have crossed the line (sorry, not sorry Spurs! Fortunately the Blues had 4 other goals that day to rely on); a run-against-the-play goal from Bale to give Spurs some false hope; a Ramires lob/chip (something that would come in
handy a few games later against Barcelona); a superb long-range free-kick from Super Frank; and; a delightful finish from Malouda to put the polish on an emphatic performance which saw the Blues walk away 5-1 winners and into another FA Cup Final at the expense of their London rivals.
It was truly a 5-star performance from Chelsea!
Final thoughts:
Let’s be clear, there have been an abundance of highly memorable moments between Chelsea & Tottenham over the past decade & beyond. Some for better, some not so much! Between the goals, assists, crunching tackles, sideline bust-ups, and controversies, whenever these two come together, the global footballing community is assured of an intriguing and passionate clash between two teams who genuinely do not like one another. And that’s the way us fans like it!
Hopefully some of these highlights allow you to reminisce and reflect fondly with a smile, but as we’re a club that is focused on the here and now, and looking ahead, let’s hope Tuchel has sufficiently motivated and prepared his troops (whoever is available and is selected) for another high-stakes blockbuster London derby!
Come on you Blues!
@RJ_Goodthings
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Brilliantly put RJ!