Chelsea and Tottenham meet up on the pitch looking to right
the ship after both losing their last time in action. Both teams are in real
need of a win and both teams are looking to be holding the fourth Champions
League spot at the end of the season.
The resurgent Blues are favored for this clash at Stamford
Bridge, listed at -110 with 5Dimes to secure three points. The visiting Spurs
can be backed at +330 with Bovada and +332 with 5Dimes on the soccer odds board.
Chelsea put in a great shift during the week, fighting tooth
and nail with Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium.
It was all for naught though as the Blues surrendered a
second-half 1-0 lead to lose 2-1. The away outfit had gone ahead thanks to Gary
Cahill, whose deflected shot wiggled its way past Joe Hart. However, the Blues
couldn't withstand the late pressure, giving away a penalty and then a
tremendous team goal with five minutes remaining.
Time to bounce back
A valiant effort, but nothing to show for it. It was Roberto
Di Matteo's first defeat since taking over the reigns of the London club.
He'll have immediately shifted his focus to this weekend
though, with another difficult encounter, this time with Tottenham, coming up.
The talk of the town earlier in the season, the Spurs have
hit a brick wall recently, getting just one point out of a possible 12 over
their last four matches. The lowlight was a 5-2 thrashing at the hands of
Arsenal (Check out my pick on the Arsenal vs. Villa game this weekend), but Tottenham also lost at home to Manchester United, fell to Everton
on the road, and managed just a draw at home to Stoke City.
Harry Redknapp couldn't have been too pleased with his
side's showing against the Potters.
A fourth straight league defeat seemed to be on the way, but
a goal from Rafael van der Vaart in stoppage time saved the home team's blushes
and at least kept Arsenal from going two points clear in that third spot.
This poor run aside, Emmanuel Adebayor has proven to be a
shrewd bit of business for the Spurs. He leads the team in both goals (11) and
assists (11) and Redknapp would be wise
to do everything in his power to get the Togolese striker to sign on a permanent
basis.
Europe is calling
Adebayor was the scorer for Tottenham in the first meeting
of the season against Chelsea, with Daniel Sturridge netting the equalizer for
the Blues. That game finished at a 1-1 tie.
So who takes the spoils in another rendition of this London
derby?
Chelsea is five points back of Tottenham in the table right
now, with that coveted fourth Champions League spot there for the taking.
Should the Blues win here, they'll be right in the thick of things again.
Surely they know that, and considering Di Matteo's men have been
performing at a much higher level over the last few weeks, I think they just
have enough to skate past the Spurs and get the points.
This is the most crucial match of the season so far for both
clubs and having that home support is always important to the cause. The Blues
may have suffered a setback during the week, but I believe they'll make amends
with a victory at Stamford Bridge on Saturday.
FREE Pick: Chelsea 2 Tottenham 1