Paul Merson believes Tottenham will want to make a statement when they travel to Stamford Bridge on Sunday but predicted that Antonio Conte’s men will come away with a point from the London derby.
Tottenham’s Premier League campaign got off to a great start as they put four past Southampton at home after going a goal down early in the encounter.
However, the Lilywhites will likely face a much sterner test on Sunday when they take on Chelsea, who edged past Everton in their season opener.
Conte’s men lost thrice in quick succession to Thomas Tuchel’s side back in January, just two months on from the Italian replacing Nuno Espirito Santo at the helm at Spurs.
Merson believes that Tottenham will want to set the record straight against their London rivals and make a statement to the rest of the league. The former Arsenal man added that a loss for either side on Sunday would prove a huge setback.
The pundit told SportsKeeda: “This match is massive, and not just because of the rivalry between the two teams. Chelsea beat Tottenham four times last season.
“They did the double over Spurs in the Premier League and that produced a huge 12-point swing in their favour.
“I’m worried for Chelsea this weekend. They were a bit United-ish against Everton, if I’m being honest. Their game wasn’t fluid and pretty stop-start, and they couldn’t put four passes together against an Everton team that wasn’t great to begin with.
“If Spurs come to Stamford Bridge and win, you’d be worried about Chelsea and their top-four credentials.
“Tottenham will want to make a statement here. A victory against Chelsea would turn heads, even if it’s only the second game of the season.
“If they lose after buying all those players, however, you’ll hear talk of how they still haven’t caught up with the Premier League’s big boys.
“If either team loses this match, it’s a massive step in the wrong direction. Neither Chelsea nor Tottenham Hotspur can afford to suffer defeat this weekend, and I think this game will end in a draw.”
Spurs Web Opinion
No matter how well we are playing, I, like many other Spurs fans, am conditioned to never be optimistic heading into a clash at Stamford Bridge, given the extremely poor record we have there.
However, I believe that Conte and the Tottenham players will be looking forward to this game and will be excited to showcase how much they have progressed since the three losses back in January.
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