SM
Cagliari vs. Juventus: 9 hrs 38 mins
Upcoming predictions and previews
SL
Premier League | Gameweek 18
Dec 22, 2019 at 4.30pm UK
 
CL

0-2

 
FT(HT: 0-2)
Willian (12', 45' pen.)

Combined XI: Tottenham Hotspur vs. Chelsea

:Headline: Combined XI: Tottenham Hotspur vs. Chelsea: ID:383539: from db_amp
Ahead of Sunday's London derby between Tottenham Hotspur and Chelsea, Sports Mole selects its strongest combined XI from both squads.

Jose Mourinho welcomes his former club Chelsea to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in the final Premier League match before Christmas as Spurs host the Blues in a festive London derby.

Tottenham have won four of their five Premier League outings since Mourinho took over from Mauricio Pochettino and would move level on points with their visitors if they chalk up another victory this weekend.

The hosts will be favourites to do just that too, considering Chelsea have lost four of their last five league games to allow the chasing pack to close the deficit in the top-four race.

Here, Sports Mole selects its strongest combined XI from both squads, using only players available for this match.



With first-choice Spurs keeper Hugo Lloris still sidelined by an elbow injury, it is a fairly easy decision to give the gloves to Kepa Arrizabalaga ahead of Paulo Gazzaniga in this team. The world's most expensive keeper has not always been afforded the best protection by his defence this season, though, with Chelsea conceding one more goal than Spurs going into this match.

It is perhaps not a surprise that Spurs provide the bulk of the backline, then, with Toby Alderweireld and Davinson Sanchez in the middle and Jan Vertonghen at left-back, where he has shone under Mourinho so far.

The match comes too soon for Antonio Rudiger to have worked his way into this team given that he has only just returned from a long-term injury, while Kurt Zouma and fitness doubt Fikayo Tomori also miss out, but there is a Chelsea representative in the form of Cesar Azpilicueta, who beats Serge Aurier to a place at right-back.

Chelsea provide both holding midfielders in N'Golo Kante and Jorginho, with Mateo Kovacic coming close to being selected too following a spell of good form. Tanguy Ndombele is an injury doubt for Spurs and is yet to enjoy a prolonged period of his best form since his summer move, while the likes of Harry Winks, Eric Dier and Moussa Sissoko have not had quite the impact of their Chelsea counterparts on games this term.

One Spurs player who is having a growing influence is Dele Alli, who seems to have benefited more than most from Mourinho's appointment. The England international has scored four goals in Mourinho's six games at the helm so far, earning the number 10 role ahead of Mason Mount and teammate Christian Eriksen.

Indeed, it is a Tottenham-heavy frontline, with the effervescent Son Heung-min selected ahead of Willian and Harry Kane predictably leading the line, although the Spurs striker did face serious competition from Tammy Abraham, who has outscored his compatriot in the Premier League so far this season.

Christian Pulisic does make the cut, though, having worked his way into Frank Lampard's first team on a regular basis now. The 21-year-old American's pace and dribbling is always likely to cause defences problems, and with five goals to his name only Abraham has netted more than him for Chelsea this term.

amp_article__383539 : Database Data restored...  : 
last updated article - 2019-12-21 12:27:22:
html db last update - 2021-03-05 15:42:50 :

ex - 7200 : read : read cache amp html
Read more!
Share this article now:
Recommended Next on SM
Premier League Table
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Manchester CityMan City32227376324473
2Arsenal32225575264971
3Liverpool32218372314171
4Aston Villa33196868491963
5Tottenham HotspurSpurs32186865491660
6Newcastle UnitedNewcastle321551269521750
7Manchester UnitedMan Utd32155124748-150
8West Ham UnitedWest Ham33139115258-648
9Chelsea31138106152947
10Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton321111105250244
11Wolverhampton WanderersWolves32127134651-543
12Fulham33126154951-242
13Bournemouth32119124757-1042
14Crystal Palace3289153754-1733
15Brentford3388174758-1132
16Everton3298153248-1627
17Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest3379174258-1626
18Luton TownLuton3367204670-2425
19Burnley3348213368-3520
20Sheffield UnitedSheff Utd3237223084-5416
Scroll for more - Tap for full version


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
AL
Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!

Loading ...

Failed to load data.



. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .