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Recent off a scintillating 5-1 midweek triumph at Southampton, Chelsea take a brief cross-capital journey to entertain fierce rivals Tottenham Hotspur on Saturday late afternoon.
Lowered to 10 males already within the first half, Russell Martin’s out-of-sorts facet couldn’t deal with the red-hot Pensioners at St Mary’s Stadium, enabling Chelsea to keep up their formidable street kind.
Enzo Maresca has turned the Blues into assured travellers, overseeing an eye catching 5 wins from seven away league matches this season, with solely Liverpool bettering his facet’s 16-point haul on the street.
Nonetheless, the table-topping Reds suffered a late heartache at Newcastle United on Wednesday, permitting the Stamford Bridge outfit to shut the hole to seven factors.
Firmly again in title conversations after two sub-par league campaigns, the six-time Premier League champions climbed to second on the finish of Matchday 14.
As Sky Sports activities consider Chelsea’s unbelievable transformation beneath Maresca, the Blues gear up for a decisive London derby at Spurs’ residence floor.
Chelsea’s standing as favourites within the Premier League betting odds highlights how spectacular Maresca’s work has been since he arrived in West London.
Completely different mindset
It’s truthful to say that former Chelsea boss Maurizio Pochettino laid the groundwork for the Blues’ resurgence, offering Maresca a platform to construct on.
Nonetheless, that takes nothing away from the 44-year-old’s stellar job, particularly with regards to extracting full potential from a number of unsettled first-team aces.
Noni Madueke is amongst quite a few Blues stars who’ve undergone a renaissance beneath the Italian tactician, thanking his supervisor for serving to him enhance after the Southampton recreation by way of Prime Video.
Madueke’s strike at St Mary’s was his fifth of the season, testifying to his noticeable enchancment from a bit-part participant within the earlier system to one in all Chelsea’s standout performers in Maresca’s set-up.
The highly-rated supervisor wants all arms on deck to take three factors on the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in opposition to probably the most unpredictable groups within the division.
Dr Jekyll & Mr Hyde
Guessing Tottenham’s efficiency on any event is pretty much as good as flipping a coin.
Solely a fortnight in the past, Ange Postecoglou’s facet inflicted Manchester Metropolis’s heaviest residence defeat within the Premier League in over twenty years, strolling to a 4-0 triumph on the Etihad Stadium.
Little did Spurs followers know the identical staff that tore the perennial English champions to items would droop to a 1-1 residence draw to Fulham solely every week later.
That stalemate types a part of Tottenham’s three-game winless residence run on residence turf, rising the chance of one other Chelsea triumph exterior the Bridge.
Maresca’s males can in no way afford to underestimate Spurs.
Beneficial match-up
Although Chelsea blew cold and hot for many of final season, that they had no points pulling off a league double over Tottenham.
Along with a landslide 2-0 residence win in Could, the Blues dismantled Spurs 4-1 on this corresponding fixture in November 2023.
That triumph was Chelsea’s fourth of their final 5 Premier League away conferences with the Lilywhites.
A 2-0 loss beneath Graham Potter’s tutelage in February 2023 stays the one blemish on this near-faultless run.
Chelsea can draw additional confidence from the truth that they’ve averted defeat in ten of their final 11 top-flight clashes in opposition to Spurs at any venue.
Title credentials on the road
It’s virtually unattainable to anticipate this Liverpool facet to drop factors in back-to-back matches, particularly contemplating they tackle relegation-battling Everton.
Closely anticipated to return to the win column in Saturday lunchtime kick-off, the Reds will possible ramp the stress again up on Chelsea.
If Maresca’s males are to show they’re title materials, beating Tottenham is crucial.
With confidence sky excessive, the Blues are in good condition to do exactly that.
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