Tottenham are Chelsea’s perfect tonic! Cole Palmer & Co. can reinvigorate Champions League chase by downing north London whipping boys

Tottenham are Chelsea’s perfect tonic! Cole Palmer & Co. can reinvigorate Champions League chase by downing north London whipping boys

A derby against a club with a horrible record at Stamford Bridge should provide the Blues with an ideal platform to get their season back on track

Whatever form they are in, Chelsea are always optimistic when Tottenham cross London to visit Stamford Bridge. Spurs’ record there is – to put it kindly – absolutely abysmal, and the Blues will be determined to exploit that psychological advantage to secure a much-needed victory on Thursday.

Enzo Maresca’s side went into the March international break sat fourth in the Premier League, with the UEFA coefficient dictating that even fifth place should be enough to seal Champions League qualification, but a sharp downturn in form and some dire performances mean their season is at risk of drifting at the crucial moment.

A home clash against their fierce rivals and traditional whipping boys is perfectly timed, then, with the weight of history behind them. Victory in the derby at the Bridge is essential if Chelsea want to get their campaign back on track ahead of the run-in.

GettyRemarkable recordTottenham’s record at Stamford Bridge is truly dismal given their status as one of London’s biggest clubs and the fact they have regularly been among Chelsea’s closest challengers for the European places in recent years. It seems to be a mental block that they just can’t overcome.Thursday’s game comes seven years and two days since Spurs’ one and only win at the Blues’ home ground in the Premier League era, as Dele Alli’s two-goal salvo delivered a famous victory. What felt like a potentially tide-shifting moment is now a distant memory, though, and that remains Tottenham’s only triumph at the Bridge in 35 years.The recent head-to-head makes for equally grim reading for the north Londoners, who have won just one of the last 10 meetings between the two clubs to Chelsea’s eight, with that solitary success coming in April 2023 when the Blues were on their knees under Graham Potter. The weight of history is well and truly stacked against Ange Postecoglou’s men.

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There for the taking

And all of that is not even taking into account Tottenham’s miserable 2024-25 campaign; Spurs came into this round of midweek fixtures marooned in 14th in the Premier League table, just two points closer to the top four than they are to the relegation zone, and – perhaps more damningly – they have actually lost the majority of their matches (15 out of 29).

As exciting as they can be going forward under Postecoglou, Tottenham have a penchant for leaving themselves woefully open at the back, but the manager still has no intention of changing his tactics despite coming under increasing pressure. Indeed, it feels as though we are finally reaching breaking point as patience begins to run out with the Australian’s uncompromising approach, with Spurs’ hopes of salvaging their season now hinging on winning the Europa League – something that looks a tall order with third-placed Bundesliga side Eintracht Frankfurt standing in their way in the quarter-finals.

Tellingly, even Postecoglou has recognised that sections of the support have “lost faith” in his project. He told Optus Sport ahead of the London derby: “It’s been a tough season. There’s no hiding from it. It hasn’t gone anywhere near the levels we wanted. There’s frustration that we’ve seen glimpses of what we want, but then enormous setbacks and our inconsistency – particularly in the league.

“I’ve always said I hate telling people how they should feel. There’s no doubt that a large portion of Tottenham fans have lost belief in what we’re doing.”

GettyTimely reinforcementsNevertheless, Chelsea fans would have been forgiven for feeling negative themselves heading into a derby against their fierce rivals. Although their form has steadied after a turbulent festive period, the Blues had been unimpressive before the international break, culminating in a turgid 1-0 defeat at Arsenal. To make matters worse, a first-team XI was reportedly beaten by the Under-21s in a training match during the pause.Injuries haven’t helped their cause, though, with Nicolas Jackson’s absence keenly felt at the point of the attack, with Maresca’s side missing the striker’s mere presence up front even if he was enduring a goal drought before he was sidelined with a hamstring injury. Out wide, Noni Madueke had found his goal-scoring touch before being ruled out with his own hamstring issue, with Chelsea already short on the wings following Mykhailo Mudryk’s doping suspension.Romeo Lavia’s continued fitness woes meant their options were incredibly thin in central midfield – which is laughable given the combined £274 million (£353m) the club has spent on the Belgian, Enzo Fernandez and Moises Caicedo . Then, to top it all off, attacking fulcrum Cole Palmer felt some discomfort in training ahead of the Arsenal clash and was subsequently forced to withdraw from the England squad.However, the clouds have cleared during the international break and an extended preparation period due to the weekend’s FA Cup action. All of those players aside from Lavia are now back in full training, meaning Maresca’s squad is more or less at full strength for the first time in a long time.

GettyGetting back on trackPalmer, in particular, will be licking his lips at the prospect of facing Tottenham upon his return as he desperately seeks to get back to the kind of form that makes him one of the finest players in the Premier League, having failed to score while providing just one assist in his last 10 games across all competitions.Chelsea’s No.20 has been typically influential in his three career appearances against Spurs, racking up four goal involvements; he scored from the spot and assisted Jackson in the chaotic 4-1 victory in north London last season, then netted two penalties – including an audacious Panenka – while running the defence ragged in the 4-3 comeback at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in December. It was also his mazy dribble that led to Fernandez crashing home the go-ahead goal.Jackson – who was in the midst of his own eight-game goal drought before his injury – loves playing Spurs too, helping himself to four goals in his three games against them. He bagged a hat-trick of tap-ins in the 4-1 romp, despite still somehow being profligate, and then nodded home a rebound in the reverse fixture at Stamford Bridge after a Palmer free-kick cannoned off the crossbar.Chelsea’s most prolific attacking players have simultaneously endured their most barren spells since joining the club. This clash with one of their favourite opponents feels perfectly timed to get them back on track.

Getty ImagesMood-shifterIt feels strange to say this is a must-win game for Chelsea, but in the intensely close-run chase for a top-five finish in the Premier League there is little room for error: just five points separated Bournemouth in 10th and the west Londoners in fourth at the international break.But there is a sense that there is more at stake than just the three points for Maresca in particular, as the mood surrounding the club will pivot on either a victory or a defeat. There is nothing like a victory over your bitter rivals to lift the gloom among a fanbase that has been agitated by recent results and performances, but a second defeat to Tottenham in 35 years? That would be certain to raise immediate serious questions of the head coach’s future.Given the history, Chelsea and their supporters will be understandably brimming with confidence going into Thursday’s game, but there is still no room for complacency against an ever-dangerous opponent who have nothing to lose domestically.”This is Chelsea’s main game of the season,” pundit and Chelsea supporter Paul Merson said ahead of the clash. “It’s definitely high stakes, but still a fixture they are expected to win. Chelsea have not been great this season, but I’d be shocked if they don’t win this game. It’s a must-win game for them too.”

Getty’Huge game’For his part, Maresca is under no illusions as to the potential significance of the derby clash. “It’s a huge game, it’s big,” he told reporters in his pre-match press conference. “We know how important it is for the fans, for the club, but in this moment it’s also important for us to finish, as I said, to try to finish where we are now. That is a huge achievement in this moment for us.”He added: “From that [a win] probably you can build momentum until the end, but from now on they are all important games and they are all with three points, so we need to win as much as we can in terms of numbers of games and then we’ll see where we finish.”If you are able to finish top four, top five, first of all it’s fantastic for the fans, for the club because we bring this club where this club has been always there. But for the players it’s also important because they can realise the work that they have done and they can build from them something for the future.”

Getty Images SportSpringboardThere will be plenty of expectation on Thursday, then, at a stadium where fan frustration has threatened to boil over in recent weeks. The challenge for the players will be to focus on the task at hand and get the job done by any means necessary.With the final international break of the season out of the way, a home victory against their capital rivals can provide the perfect springboard for what remains of the campaign as Chelsea prepare for a challenging run-in where they will face Liverpool, Manchester United, Nottingham Forest and Newcastle in their bid for a top-four or five place. It would certainly to go some way to ending their recent crisis of confidence, too.The Blues can take solace in that fact that there is almost always optimism when Tottenham cross the capital. They must overcome their own shortcomings to capitalise on Spurs’ Stamford Bridge hoodoo and haul their own season back on track.