Chelsea vs Tottenham: Match Preview

This London derby has real bite for Tottenham. They're 17th with 38 points and just two clear of the drop zone, while Chelsea sit ninth on 49. The visitors have picked up four points from their last four games, including wins over Wolves and Aston Villa. Chelsea have not won in seven league outings.

Recent results tell their own story. Chelsea lost 0-3 to Manchester City in April, then dropped points against Manchester United, Brighton and Nottingham Forest. Tottenham lost to Sunderland but bounced back with a draw against Brighton and those two victories. The form edge sits with the away side right now, even if their league position screams survival mode.

Only one recent head-to-head stands out. Tottenham lost 0-1 at home to Chelsea last November. That narrow defeat might still sting, yet both squads carry plenty of absences into this one. Chelsea miss Pedro Neto, Alejandro Garnacho, Robert Sanchez, Jamie Gittens and Estevao through various knocks. Tottenham are without Xavi Simons, Cristian Romero, Dejan Kulusevski and Guglielmo Vicario, while Dominic Solanke remains doubtful with a muscle issue.

João Pedro leads Chelsea's attack with 15 goals. Cole Palmer has nine more. Those two will carry most of the threat. Tottenham's forward options look thinner, which could limit their counter-punch despite the unbeaten run.

Expect Chelsea to control more of the ball, but their leaky defence has cost them lately. Tottenham will sit deep and look for set-piece scraps or the odd break. A low-scoring affair feels likely, though the home side should edge it on quality alone.

HOME_PLAYER: João Pedro HOME_LOOK: Brazilian, dark hair short style, clean shaven, athletic build AWAY_PLAYER: Dominic Solanke AWAY_LOOK: English-Nigerian, short black hair, clean shaven, tall striker build