Pedro strike and Trippier howler lift Sarri and give Chelsea win over Spurs
Maurizio Sarri, in time, may point to this as the victory which breathed life into his tenure as Chelsea’s head coach – the moment when all the doubts that had infected his team over the winter months gave way to newfound belief in the Italian’s methods. That, at least, must be the long-term hope. For now he can bask in a timely win over bitter rivals which has earned him significant respite after a desperate few weeks.
Tottenham, their display as troublingly disjointed as in defeat at Burnley a few days previously and with Saturday’s derby against Arsenal looming ever larger, ended embarrassed here with Kieran Trippier inexplicably placing a back pass wide of an on-rushing Hugo Lloris six minutes from time. The ball trickled unaided over the line with Willian in hot pursuit and those in the Matthew Harding stand already bouncing gleefully in celebration. The crowing din of the home support will have pursued the visitors from the arena.
The French World Cup winner had endured a hideous evening, allowing Pedro’s opener to squirm through his legs and nestle inside the near post via a flick from his right ankle, with his rather frazzled display epitomising that of the team. It was as if Chelsea tapped into that insecurity, sensing vulnerability and exploiting it ruthlessly, all while the world’s most expensive goalkeeper twiddled his thumbs among the home side’s substitutes.
What had initially been dismissed in public as an innocent “misunderstanding” back at Wembley on Sunday, when Kepa Arrizabalaga had refused to be substituted by a head coach on the brink, had actually left the Spaniard £190,000 out of pocket and dropped. Yet that show of strength from Sarri, a decision made “for the good of the group” as a reminder that the priority must always be the collective, ended up feeling cathartic. Kepa’s name had drawn some boos when read out over the Tannoy before kick-off but Chelsea were a team united, galvanised by a collision with local rivals and rallying behind Willy Caballero on his first Premier League start since last May. They ended with the relationship between squad and crowd – so strained at times of late – audibly reinforced.
The restoration of spirit was epitomised by David Luiz, Antonio Rüdiger and the excellent Pedro sprinting to Caballero at the final whistle to celebrate. Or César Azpilicueta, an on-field captain whose failure to usher Arrizabalaga from the pitch had drawn criticism on Sunday, muscling his way into every spat or confrontation between teammates and Spurs players which drew the referee’s whistle. The
home side ended up prevailing despite Eden Hazard being visibly exhausted and withdrawn before the hour-mark, but with others stepping up to ensure Chelsea remain only three points adrift of the top four.
“The result was very important because the fans saw the team able to fight,” said Sarri. “For the relationship with the fans it was really a very important match. But I am the coach. I think about my team and what is important now is consistency. To fight for 10 matches in a row. Maybe we are not able to win 10 matches in a row but we’ll be able to fight.” They make the short journey to Fulham on Sunday with faith apparently restored and their head coach, whose position had felt terminally undermined even before Kepa’s show of petulance publicly belittled his authority, suddenly spying light at the end of the tunnel.
Tottenham, in contrast, might have entered the gloom. They barely tested Caballero, a mere spectator until he punched away Trippier’s free-kick just before the half-hour mark and, even if Harry Winks battered a shot on to the crossbar from distance, did not muster a shot on target for the first time under Mauricio Pochettino’s stewardship in a Premier League game, though Chelsea themselves managed only one. They were marginally off kilter all night, forever slightly off the pace with Christian Eriksen’s promptings suffocated and Harry Kane frustrated and infuriated.
The England captain had squared up to David Luiz and Azpilicueta in the first half – there was a hint of a headbutt at one point – and there were further flashpoints near the end, by which time Spurs’ cause felt hopeless.
Gonzalo Higuaín had struck an upright long before Pedro, fed by Azpilicueta’s pass beyond Ben Davies, had edged the hosts ahead, turning inside Toby Alderweireld before spitting a shot through Lloris’s legs at the near post. Chelsea suggested they would probably see out the win with that lead still slender before Trippier’s wayward pass and Lloris’s rush of blood further punctured the visitors late on.
Spurs’ lead from fourth-placed Arsenal has been trimmed to four points before Saturday’s meeting at Wembley. “But at the beginning of the season everyone would have been satisfied to be going into this game with that gap,” said Pochettino. “The pressure is on them, not only us. Them too, surely.”
The Argentinian has spent the last few months looking up towards Liverpool and Manchester City, rather than fretting over who is hovering at Tottenham’s shoulders. “Why should we be careful [about a top-four finish]? I am not afraid. I have freedom in my mind, the same feeling I had before. It’s not a drama, eh? It’s about being calm. We need to support the players, lift them and help them to compete on Saturday.”