Things seem to be going from bad to worse for Chelsea. The formation of manager Graham Potter lost again in the Premier League on Sunday, this time 2-0 against Tottenham Hotspur. Hakim Ziyech claimed a negative leading role by dealing some taps after provocations from some Tottenham players. The attacking midfielder was sent off by referee Stuart Attwell, but after a VAR correction he was allowed to stay. Oliver Skipp and Harry Kane then signed for the important goals of the Spurs on your own field.
Potter made six changes at Chelsea from a week ago’s 0-1 defeat to Southampton. Visiting Tottenham there were base places for Kai Havertz, Raheem Sterling and therefore also Ziyech. Noni Madueke sat on the bench with the West London visitors. There was no change on the Tottenham side compared to the 2-0 win over West Ham United in the previous round. Manager Antonio Conte is still recovering from gallbladder surgery.
?? Hakim Ziyech gets red!
?? The VAR eventually turns it into a yellow cardRight decision? ??https://t.co/QLVsNphuba#ViaplaySportNL #ViaplayFootball pic.twitter.com/CjZhThVJa4
— Viaplay Sport Netherlands (@viaplaysportnl) February 26, 2023
Both teams showed offensive intentions in the early stages and enough happened for both goals. Ziyech was regularly involved in Chelsea’s attacking game, which saw Thiago Silva drop out injured after twenty minutes. Wesley Fofana took his place at the rear. In the final phase of the first half, the flame hit the pan. Ziyech took down Richarlison in front of Atwell and the Brazilian was clearly not happy about that. The two got into a fight and more and more players became involved. Ziyech pushed Emerson Royal in the face and had to leave with a red card after a long deliberation from the arbitration. After a thorough check, the international of Morocco was allowed to stay and it only remained yellow.
No goals, but the necessary action in the first half. A minute after the restart, Tottenham broke the spell. Kepa saved on an attempt by Emerson Royal, but shortly afterwards it was Skipp who was accurate with a blast from just outside the box and over the crossbar: 1-0. It was his first ever goal for Tottenham. Potter intervened and took Ziyech to the side after more than an hour, with Denis Zakaria as his replacement. An equalizer was never really an option for Chelsea and it was Tottenham that put things in order eight minutes before the end. Kane made it 2-0 at the far post after a headed ball from Eric Dier. Tottenham strengthens the coveted fourth place, Chelsea continues to struggle in tenth place.
What a start to the second half??
Oliver Skipp scores his first Spurs goal in style https://t.co/2eOZ6Xk6yB#ViaplaySportNL #ViaplayFootball pic.twitter.com/FibdzvQEAy— Viaplay Sport Netherlands (@viaplaysportnl) February 26, 2023
| No. | Team | m | W | G | v | +/- | Pnt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Arsenal | 24 | 18 | 3 | 3 | 29 | 57 |
| 2 | Manchester City | 25 | 17 | 4 | 4 | 39 | 55 |
| 3 | Manchester United | 24 | 15 | 4 | 5 | 13 | 49 |
| 4 | Tottenham Hotspur | 25 | 14 | 3 | 8 | 11 | 45 |
| 5 | Newcastle United | 23 | 10 | 11 | 2 | 20 | 41 |
| 6 | Fulham | 25 | 11 | 6 | 8 | 5 | 39 |
| 7 | Liverpool | 23 | 10 | 6 | 7 | 10 | 36 |
| 8 | Brighton & Hove Albion | 22 | 10 | 5 | 7 | 10 | 35 |
| 9 | Brentford | 23 | 8 | 11 | 4 | 7 | 35 |
| 10 | Chelsea | 24 | 8 | 7 | 9 | -2 | 31 |
| 11 | Aston Villa | 24 | 9 | 4 | 11 | -8 | 31 |
| 12 | Crystal Palace | 24 | 6 | 9 | 9 | -10 | 27 |
| 13 | Nottingham Forest | 24 | 6 | 7 | 11 | -24 | 25 |
| 14 | Leicester City | 24 | 7 | 3 | 14 | -6 | 24 |
| 15 | Wolverhampton W. | 24 | 6 | 6 | 12 | -15 | 24 |
| 16 | West Ham United | 24 | 6 | 5 | 13 | -6 | 23 |
| 17 | Leeds United | 24 | 5 | 7 | 12 | -10 | 22 |
| 18 | Everton | 24 | 5 | 6 | 13 | -15 | 21 |
| 19 | AFC Bournemouth | 24 | 5 | 6 | 13 | -26 | 21 |
| 20 | Southampton | 24 | 5 | 3 | 16 | -22 | 18 |