Chelsea continue crushing dominance over suffering Spurs thanks to João Pedro goal

Tottenham Hotspur (0) 0 v Chelsea (1) 1

João Pedro 34

By Kaz Mochlinski at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium

Premier League

Matchweek 10

Tottenham Hotspur’s home ground may no longer be called White Hart Lane, but for Chelsea supporters it remains ‘Three Point Lane’ as the Blues continued their overwhelming domination over Spurs of recent years with yet another victory.

João Pedro scored the only goal of the game to bring Chelsea level on points with Tottenham and trailing them just on goal difference, although the visitors would have gone well ahead on that count if they had not squandered numerous other openings.

The 0-1 scoreline does not remotely reflect the unexpectedly one-sided way the match developed, with Spurs being completely crushed by Chelsea’s suffocating pressure out of possession, led by Moisés Caicedo, who was outstanding once more.

The home team managed just one attempt on goal in the whole game, and they did not have a single shot in the second half, with it never looking likely that they would be able to mount any sort of comeback, amid an adject and dispiriting lack of a scoring threat.

“I’ve never been in charge of a team that create that little in one game” admitted a forlorn Thomas Frank after Tottenham recorded their lowest ever xG in a Premier League match with an expected goals figure of only 0.05.

“I think Chelsea were good. We were definitely second best. We performed badly. I think we lacked energy and an intensity. That freshness, we didn’t have that.

“Then I think the high pressure they came with, I don’t think we solved it well enough. Even though we worked on it.”

Frank’s predecessor at Spurs, Ange Postecoglou, lost all four of his Premier League meetings with Chelsea, but was still appreciated for his forward-focused approach by a fanbase who famously value attacking football above all else.

Tottenham’s latest head coach will be worried that, after only three months in charge, the lack of courage or creative ideas from his players was greeted with some jeering at half-time and then loud boos at the final whistle.

That was a huge contrast to exactly two years ago, when Postecoglou’s side was applauded off the pitch despite losing 1-4 to Chelsea, having finished with nine men after two red cards but still come close to an improbable draw.

Spurs also let in four goals in the same fixture last season, but battled back to a more respectable 3-4 defeat. This time only Guglielmo Vicario’s heroics, including repeatedly in one-on-one situations, prevented conceding that number for the third year in a row.

Vicario seemed to have made a vital intervention on the half-hour, when a poor Pedro Porro pass rebounded off Alejandro Garnacho to leave João Pedro clear in the penalty box for a shot stopped with his legs by the goalkeeper coming quickly off his line.

However, just three minutes later, João Pedro made up for that miss by hitting the winning goal, after another terrible Tottenham blunder to lose possession in a dangerous area when trying to play out from defence.

Djed Spence, Xavi Simons and Micky van de Ven were all at fault, as Caicedo embarrassingly robbed first Spence and then van de Ven, before getting into the right side of the box and setting up João Pedro for the finish.

Once again, the Chelsea striker found himself in front of goal with only Vicario to beat, but on this occasion he hammered the ball right-footed into the far top corner of the net, in a manner belying his recent scoring drought.

It was João Pedro’s first goal since August, ending a run of nine weeks and eight matches without finding the net for Chelsea. Including his involvement in Brazil’s World Cup qualifying campaign, he had endured 10 goalless games for club and country.

And he had not even managed a shot on target in any of those appearances, having been hampered since the international break in early September by a groin injury, which has persistently limited his training during this period.

When he eventually scored at Spurs, over 12 hours of playing time in Chelsea colours in the Premier League and Champions League had elapsed from his last goal - and 14 hours with the addition of his selections by Carlo Ancelotti for Brazil.

So far in his short Chelsea career, João Pedro has at least demonstrated an affinity for London derbies, with all three of his goals this season for the club coming against city rivals, having struck in turn against West Ham United, Fulham, and now Tottenham.

He could have scored again before half-time, in the one exceptional passage of play in the whole match. Pedro Neto put Malo Gusto away down the right for a low cross met first-time by João Pedro with a rising shot that Vicario did brilliantly well to tip over.

There was nothing remotely as impressive until Estêvão’s introduction on the right wing towards the end of the second half, when the two Brazil teammates twice linked up superbly in stoppage time, sending João Pedro through on both occasions.

Facing only the goalkeeper, inexplicably the initial opportunity was squandered by squaring the ball to Jamie Gittens, who snatched at a first-time shot and sent it wildly high over the crossbar.

Just a minute later, Enzo Fernández provided an Argentinian connection between the Brazilian pair, putting João Pedro clear on goal, but his low shot was excellently blocked by another Vicario intervention to keep the score respectable.

Straight after half-time, Fernández had brought a good diving stop out of the keeper with a shot from outside the area, and then met a typically precise Reece James right-sided cross with a header which he put over.

Vicario also had to make smart saves from two Neto shooting attempts in the middle of the second half, when all the scoring chances were Chelsea’s, with none at the other end by the team already trailing and needing a goal to avoid defeat.

Spurs’ solitary glimmers of brightness were from Mohammed Kudus on the right. He had all three of his side’s shots in the game - one blocked, one skied, and their single attempt on target, in the sixth minute of added time at the end of the first half.

Robert Sánchez’s only save of the evening came from a long goalkick by his opposite number which fell fortuitously for Randal Kolo Muani to run forward and move the ball from left to right through Pape Sarr to Kudus cutting in onto his left-foot for a low drive.

Otherwise Tottenham were almost entirely impotent against the Blues’ magnificent midfield combination of Caicedo and James, while long balls and set-pieces were no threat to the seemingly bigger and physically stronger Chelsea players.

Cristian Romero immediately stood out for Spurs when he was brought on after an hour, as he recovers from his recent thigh muscle injury, taking back the captaincy from the disappointing van de Ven to provide much-needed leadership and authority.

It was not enough to change the course of a match which went wrong for Tottenham right at the outset with Lucas Bergvall’s concussion necessitating an early substitution and a switch away from Frank’s gameplan of playing four central midfielders.

The incident occurred too soon after the kick-off for there to be any idea of how the intended system would have worked, but it appeared to be a very cautious, negative approach which Spurs never shook off.

Brennan Johnson, Wilson Odobert, Simons, and Richarlison all began on the bench, and their gradual introduction made no impact on a contest whose pattern and course were already established, against an intransigent and well-organised opponent.

“Today of course everyone will be frustrated” accepted Frank. “I’d say we have 24 hours and then we need to look forward again. Today was one snapshot that didn’t look good.

“I think there have definitely been other spells that have been better. There’s no doubt, and I keep saying it, that we have a front four that is new. We have to build together with short turnarounds in games.

“We’ll do that. I’m not in doubt that will happen. I think every team l’ve coached has scored a lot of goals. It will happen again in the future here.”

On this Saturday night, the outcome felt all too inevitable and ultimately easy for Chelsea - even without Cole Palmer, who was missing his ninth consecutive match with a groin injury, having only played four games and started three times this season.

That made for the dullest meeting between these clubs in ages. It was certainly not at the level to be expected of a game between two of the three current European club competition title-holders, in the Europa League and Conference League respectively.

João Pedro will remember his winning goal, and Enzo Maresca was satisfied with his 50th victory as the Blues’ head coach. But Spurs v Chelsea was not the same without Palmer and Postecoglou.

Tottenham Hotspur: (4-2-3-1) Vicario - Porro (Udogie 73), Danso (Romero 60), van de Ven, Spence - Bentancur (Richarlison 60), João Palhinha - Kudus, Pape Sarr, Bergvall (Xavi Simons 7 (Odobert 73)) - Kolo Muani (Johnson 73)

Chelsea: (4-2-3-1) Sánchez - Gusto (Lavia 76), Fofana (Adarabioyo 89), Chalobah, Cucurella - James, Caicedo - Neto (Estêvão 85), Fernández, Garnacho (Gittens 66) - João Pedro

Attendance: 61,202