Tottenham beat London rivals Chelsea 2-0 at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium to further cement their top four place on the English Premier League table.
English players Oliver Skipp and Harry Kane scored second-half goals to add more misery to an already disappointing season for the Blues.
It was an uneventful first-half of the Premier League clash as Chelsea and Tottenham created little at both ends. Both teams lacked attacking bite and were not able to create any real clear cut opportunity in the first period.
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Chelsea lost captain Thiago Silva to injury in the first half and was replaced by the returning Wesley Fofana.
England forward Raheem Sterling stung the palms of goalkeeper Fraser Forster with his shot in one of the few moments that attracted applause from the away support.
Hakim Ziyech was initially red carded after an altercation that involved Richarlison, Emerson Royal and Clement Lenglet.
However, referee Stuart Attwell took the liberty to consult the pitch side monitor before cancelling the red card and awarding a yellow instead.
Spurs win vital to Champions League football aspirations
Tottenham took the lead 21 seconds into the second half when an Enzo FernƔndez clearance fell for Oliver Skipp who wasted no time in shooting past Kepa Arrizabalaga into the net.
Chelsea seemed to spark to life but failed to turn any of their attacking moves into a real threat. Kai Havertz looked dull but there were flashes of brilliance from JoĆ£o FĆ©lix and FernĆ”ndez.
Spurs tried to extend their lead with a few attacking moves but were denied, majorly by Kalidou Koulibaly and Fofana.
The home team finally got their second goal when substitute Son Heung-min’s corner kick was headed by Eric Dier towards an unmarked Harry Kane who dispatched the ball into an empty net.
Chelsea’s bench was visibly silenced and caught sad, unhappy faces following the second goal. Graham Potter sent on Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Mykhailo Mudryk but both could do nothing to redeem the Blues.
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Unpleasant times for Chelsea
Tottenham retain fourth position but now move to 45 points while Chelsea are still rooted in 10th with 31 points.
With today’s loss, Chelsea are now without an away win in eight games. It is their longest such run since the 2000-01 season. They last won on the road against Aston Villa back in October (four months ago). Villa, coincidentally, are now level on points with the Blues.
Also, the Blues have scored only six goals in their last 12 league matches. It is the lowest of any Premier League team in that time.
Additionally, Chelsea now have only two wins in their last 15 games in all competitions.
Meanwhile, sports journalist Ben Jacobs tweeted minutes after the encounter that the Chelsea hierarchy has no intention of dismissing English manager Potter.
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