Chelsea 2-0 Tottenham: Hakim Ziyech and Thiago Silva score for Blues

Two second-half goals, including a brilliant strike from Hakim Ziyech, helped Chelsea beat Tottenham for the third time in three weeks.

After a goalless first half, Ziyech scored within two minutes of the restart, superbly curling the ball into the top corner from 20 yards after a fine run from Callum Hudson-Odoi.

The hosts doubled their lead eight minutes later when defender Thiago Silva headed in from Mason Mount's excellent free-kick delivery.

In the first half, Tottenham thought they had taken the lead as Harry Kane slotted the ball past Kepa Arrizabalaga, but the goal was ruled out as the England striker was adjudged to have pushed Silva to the ground.

The victory comes after Chelsea won both legs of their Carabao Cup semi-final against Spurs, winning 3-0 on aggregate to set up a Wembley final against Liverpool.

This defeat was Tottenham's first in the league since Antonio Conte, a Premier League and FA Cup winner during his spell in charge of Chelsea, replaced the sacked Nuno Espirito Santo in November.

For Chelsea this was a welcome return to winning ways in the league.

They were top of the Premier League after a 2-1 win at Watford on 1 December but a run of only 11 points from their next nine games has severely damaged their hopes of becoming English champions for the first time since Conte guided them to the title in 2016-17.

They remain third and are 10 points behind leaders Manchester City, although Thomas Tuchel's side will not play in the league again until 19 February as a result of their participation in the Fifa Club World Cup, following their Champions League success.

Conte opted for a back four, the first time he had done so in a league game at Tottenham, as he looked to keep it tight and hit his former team on