Chelsea beat Tottenham Hotspur 2-0 at Stamford Bridge to keep them in the hunt for European football – and deal a massive blow to their London rivals’ hopes of qualifying for the Champions League next season.
Trevoh Chalobah opened the scoring when the defender rose to meet a Conor Gallagher free-kick with a powerful header midway through the first half.
There was a lengthy video assistant referee check for a possible block by Chelsea defender Marc Cucurella on Brennan Johnson in the build-up, but the goal was given.
Spurs did not create many chances and Cristian Romero had their best opportunity when he headed wide inside the six-yard box in the first half.
But Chelsea took control in the 71st minute when Cole Palmer’s free-kick from the edge of the area struck the bar and Nicolas Jackson headed the rebound into an empty net.
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Victory sent Chelsea into eighth place, just two points behind Newcastle in seventh and a possible European spot.
Tottenham, meanwhile, are seven points behind Aston Villa with a game in hand in their battle for fourth place.
Their defeat means Liverpool have now clinched Champions League football in 2024-25.
Chelsea’s strong home form continues
Chelsea had only lost one of their 17 previous home games in all competitions and that defeat was back in February against Wolves.
They put in another good performance here and Jackson – a constant menace to the Spurs defense – had a great chance early on when he was played through but saw his shot half-saved by Guglielmo Vicario before Micky van de Ven then cleared off the line.
Van de Ven’s clearance went straight to Palmer but he could not steer the ball in from close range.
With 14 first-team players out injured and a substitute bench packed full of youngsters – the 21-year-old Cesare Casadei the oldest member – manager Mauricio Pochettino had to rely on his first XI to give him victory on his 400th game in English football.
Mykhailo Mudryk and Noni Madueke caused Tottenham plenty of problems on the counterattack but could not find the final ball to give Chelsea a third goal.
Stand-in captain Gallagher meanwhile, having set up the first goal, rewarded Chelsea supporters with a fine performance after they displayed a banner in his support before the game.
The England midfielder only has one year left on his contract and Chelsea are open to offers for him with Spurs one of the interested clubs.
Tottenham slips further behind in the race for fourth
Ange Postecoglou made five changes from the side that lost the north London derby at the weekend but that did not seem to galvanise his Spurs side.
The Australian cut a frustrated figure in the first half as he tried to get his team going, with much of his frustration aimed at midfielder Yves Bissouma.
Tottenham have lost their past three Premier League games and are losing ground and hope of getting a Champions League place.
They are seven points behind Aston Villa, who would guarantee fourth place with two wins from their final three games, even if Spurs won all four of theirs.
Tottenham have also now kept just two clean sheets in their past 25 Premier League games and conceded from yet another set-piece in this match.
Sources: BBC Sport
