Chelsea climbed back into the Premier League’s top four as Enzo Fernandez’s header early in the second half earned a 1-0 derby win over Tottenham at Stamford Bridge.
Enzo Maresca’s side were under pressure after limping into the international break playing football that had ceased to excite home fans, but they largely had the better of a disappointing Spurs team that failed to take advantage of the growing discontent surrounding the home side.
As when these teams met in north London last season, VAR played a prominent role, ruling out goals from Moises Caicedo and Pape Sarr after half-time, but Chelsea deserved the points as their Champions League challenge got back on track.
They had begun with far greater energy than in recent lacklustre performances. In the first minute Nicolas Jackson on his return to the side was denied one-on-one by goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario then saw Micky van de Ven’s fluffed clearance ricochet off him and against the post, before moments later Malo Gusto rifled Marc Cucurella’s cross into the side-netting.
Destiny Udogie almost then turned Cole Palmer’s cross past his own goalkeeper under pressure from Fernandez as Spurs seemingly improvised their way defensively through the early exchanges.
A concerning sight for Maresca was Caicedo requiring treatment on the pitch for a hamstring issue, particularly so with Romeo Lavia having suffered a setback in his rehabilitation from injury. The head coach need not have worried, as Caicedo recovered to give an outstanding first-half display of power and poise to snuff out Spurs’ limited attacking presence.
There were signs of life at last in the visitors after 37 minutes when Son Heung-min found space in the box and drew a one-handed stop from Robert
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