Chelsea vs Tottenham Odds, Picks
| Chelsea Odds | +125 |
| Tottenham Odds | +170 |
| Draw | +310 |
| Over / Under | 2.5 -130 / +106 |
This London derby has been one of the most eventful fixtures in the Premier League recently.
The "Battle of the Bridge" in 2016, where Chelsea denied Spurs the league title, the 2-2 draw at the start of last season, which featured Thomas Tuchel and Antonio Conte getting into a spat on the touchline after full-time and the reverse fixture this campaign all immediately come to mind. With Conte, Mauricio Pochettino and Jose Mourinho all managing both clubs in the last decade, there's been an added element of animosity to these clashes as well.
The first meeting between Chelsea and Tottenham this season was as action-packed as a match can get. The ball must've been in the back of the net at least a dozen times, with less than half of those counting on the scoresheet, and Spurs continuing to keep an extremely high line down two men was one of the most memorable sights this season has delivered. While this edition of one of the great English derbies might not be as wild as some of its predecessors, a natural contrast in styles of the two sides is sure to deliver entertainment.
Read on for my Chelsea vs Tottenham pick and prediction and Premier League match preview.
Chelsea
Chelsea come into this fixture on a slightly higher note than their opponents, but that's not saying a lot. After getting slaughtered by Arsenal at the Emirates, Pochettino and co. were able to salvage a point at Villa Park after going down 2-0 — and it could've been three points had VAR not ruled out Axel Disasi's 95th-minute winner. European qualification is theoretically still possible, but with the longest injury list in the league and a general pattern of inconsistency this season, it seems unlikely.
This campaign has certainly not been kind to the west London club, as they're fifth in the xG table but have not capitalized on the opportunities they've been afforded. Outside of Cole Palmer, pretty much every player has either not met expectations or been injured, or both. Pochettino hasn't been able to figure out his best back four, the double pivot of Enzo Fernandez and Moises Caicedo hasn't been worth half of what the club paid for them — and now Fernandez is out for the season — and their forwards can't string two games of consistent production together. It feels like everyone connected to the club just wants to get these last five fixtures over with and embark on an overhaul in the summer.
Tottenham
Spurs' top-four hopes took another blow over the weekend as they fell 3-2 to Arsenal in the North London Derby. While they do have two games in hand on fourth-placed Aston Villa, they are seven points behind and have Liverpool and Manchester City upcoming on the schedule. If they want to secure Champions League qualification in Ange Postecouglou's first go around, this match is practically must-win, although given it's a derby, that attribute could be applied to the game regardless.
Tottenham have been one of the most entertaining teams in the league this season, although that's become more a result of their porous defense and less due to their attack as the year has gone on. Spurs will commit numbers forward, press and counter-press aggressively and attempt to build attacks from back to front, but on the flip side, that's left them extremely vulnerable to opposing transitions, and their brittle set-piece defending hasn't helped. They certainly can cause Chelsea's defense, which has looked like a sieve at times, problems, but the opposite is just as true, as Chelsea's counterattacking threat will lead to quality chance creation.
Chelsea vs Tottenham
Prediction
Given the natural clash of the two sides' styles and setups and the defensive struggles both have displayed, the over just looks like the obvious pick. Chelsea will get opportunities on the break against a high line, and they might also force a high turnover or two as they'll press Tottenham high, but if and when Spurs break that press, they'll find joy of their own.
The first meeting between these two outfits gave us a glimpse at what 11 v 11 for 90 minutes would look like, and it's certainly not going to be a cagey affair. Before Cristian Romero got sent off after 30 minutes, both teams had put the ball in the net twice — granted, three of those four "goals" were ruled out — and the match was wide open.
Expect similar game dynamics in this contest, which should lead to quite a few goals.
