CHELSEA 2-1 SPURS
- Goals: Olivier Giroud (£6.5m), Marcos Alonso (£6.0m)
- Own Goals: Antonio Rüdiger (£6.0m)
- Assists: Ross Barkley x2 (£5.6m) | Erik Lamela (£5.7m)
- Bonus Points: Giroud x3, Mateo Kovacic x2 (£5.3m), Hugo Lloris (£5.3m)
Saturday lunchtime brought FPL flashbacks to many, as goals for forgotten men Olivier Giroud (£6.5m) and Marcos Alonso (£6.0m) guided Chelsea to a vital 2-1 win over Spurs, extending their fourth-placed gap over the visitors to four points.
Giroud had previously started just two league games this season and was close to joining Spurs in January but gave Chelsea the lead after 15 minutes. Sent through on goal by Jorginho (£4.9m), the Frenchman’s initial shot was saved by fellow World Cup winner Hugo Lloris (£5.3m) before Ross Barkley’s (£5.6m) instant rebound hit the post and landed back at Giroud, this team beating Lloris with a low left-footed strike at his near post.
Frank Lampard was happy to see his side double their lead over former mentor Jose Mourinho early in the second half via the familiar sights of Alonso. The left-back collected 15 goals and 15 assists from the last three seasons, becoming an FPL legend in the process.
However, he has played a peripheral role for Lampard. His only two starts since Gameweek 10 have been against Spurs and, after a clean sheet and assist brought him 11 points in December’s clash, he made it 2-0 at Stamford Bridge by driving home a first-time, long-range strike.
“I’m pleased. You always look clever when that comes off and you’re called an idiot when it doesn’t but we have to make decisions every week. I’m delighted for them because they’re experienced lads and when they’re not playing regularly, it’s not easy.” – Frank Lampard
Four changes were made to the side which lost to Man Utd on Monday night and they combined for the goal when a throw-in was flicked on by Giroud to Mason Mount (£6.1m), shifting the ball for Barkley to then put on a plate for Alonso’s left foot.
It was a quiet game for Fantasy assets as both managers made changes to accommodate wing-back systems. Mount and Cesar Azpilicueta (£5.8m) were the only players with over 5% ownership to make the starting line-ups, with Tammy Abraham (£7.6m), Dele Alli (£8.4m) and Serge Aurier (£5.0m) settling for late substitute cameos.
Mount’s high pressing was impressive all game and he forced a good early save from Lloris after being played through by Alonso. Soon after, the Spaniard foreshadowed his goal by chesting the ball and hitting a beautiful right-footed shot that narrowly missed the target.
“The opponent knows that if they press high, we cannot go long because we don’t have a target, a player to connect the game and when they are winning and drop the block, it’s difficult for us to get through.” – Jose Mourinho
Spurs occasionally created chances, like the low shot from Lucas Moura (£7.1m) in the 10th minute that forced a good save from Willy Caballero (£4.8m) after some good interplay with Steven Bergwijn (£7.5m). Those two linked up again in the 34th minute, resulting in a strong block from Azpilicueta. A Davinson Sanchez (£5.3m) header brought an athletic save from Caballero in a fairly even first half.
Soon after, a freakish goal nearly occurred for Japhet Tanganga (£4.1m). Entrusted with playing as a right wing-back, he was found by a long Toby Alderweireld (£5.3m) pass from defence. His first touch took him from the touchline to somehow rounding Caballero – if the touch wasn’t slightly over-hit, the youngster would have tapped in an equaliser.
A big talking point was the potential red card for Giovani Lo Celso (£7.3m) that VAR initially opted against. Early in the second half, the Argentine’s studs came down on Cesar Azpilicueta’s shin, although it was deemed to not be serious foul play. He finished the match.
Yet word later came from VAR’s Stockley Park headquarters, admitting it should have been a red card but wasn’t given for reasons of human error. A new low for the controversial technology, this will no doubt be talked about all week and beyond.
“That’s what VAR was brought in for, to see things that the referee on the pitch doesn’t see and it’s just not good enough. It’s no good saying afterwards that they’ve made a mistake because they have a couple of minutes to get it right. So it’s another huge question mark over VAR. I want it to be good, I want it to work but it was so wrong today.” – Frank Lampard
Abraham was described as “at about 70 per cent having not trained much recently” in Lampard’s press conference but almost made an immediate impact after replacing Giroud in the 71st minute, with a close-range chance foiled by Lloris.
The 22-year-old has lost two million owners since his Gameweek 13 peak and his appeal continues to weaken due to Giroud’s strong performance and Chelsea’s run of games.
Despite good fixtures against Bournemouth (away), Everton (home) and former club Aston Villa (away), Chelsea are highly unlikely to play in Gameweek 31 because they and opponents Manchester City both have promising FA Cup fifth round ties, where either’s progression will postpone the league game.
Out-of-form Alli showed his frustrations after being substituted during the midweek loss to RB Leipzig and he, alongside Aurier, were victims of Mourinho’s tactical switch. Spurs are still struggling to score goals in the absence of Harry Kane (£10.8m) and Son Heung-min (£9.9m), with their late consolation here being an own goal from Antonio Rüdiger.
Both are out of action for months rather than weeks, leaving Moura and Bergwijn as out-of-position options up-front. The former scored in FA Cup clashes with Southampton and Middlesbrough but neither are stand-out options for a mixed bag of upcoming fixtures against Wolves (home), Burnley (away) and Manchester United (home). Whether they play in Gameweek 31 depends on their FA Cup clash with Norwich.
Despite the own goal, Caballero did more than enough to keep his place in goal over Kepa Arrizabalaga (£5.5m). In the 82nd minute, Alonso crashed a free-kick against the crossbar but his owners had to settle for eight points on this occasion.
Chelsea (3-4-2-1): Caballero; Azpilicueta, Rudiger, Christensen; James, Jorginho, Kovacic, Alonso; Barkey (Willian 77’), Mount; Giroud (Abraham 71’)
Tottenham Hotspur XI (5-3-2): Lloris; Tanganga, Sanchez, Alderweireld (Aurier 78’), Vertonghen, Davies; Winks, Ndombele (Lamela 63’), Lo Celso; Bergwijn (Alli 78’), Moura.
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