Spurs vs Chelsea Preview: xT from dribbles, zones and smart passes – the stats | OneFootball

Two of the big guns of London will be going against each other when Tottenham Hotspur face Chelsea at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in the last game of the fifth gameweek of the Premier League.

Spurs will be looking to get back to winning ways after an impressive start to the Premier League when they won three in three but faced a resilient Crystal Palace team last week who beat them by three goals.

Tottenham were without their star man Heung-Min Son last week as he was out injured. Spurs faced a setback early on in the game when Eric Dier was subbed off after being injured a 50-50 tackle. They had to further change their centre back pairing when Tanganga was sent off after receiving a second yellow for a lunging tackle on Jordan Ayew.

Lucas Moura had a decent game against Crystal Palace as he created the most chances for Spurs and had the highest xT from the dribbles he attempted. He also had the only shot on target for Spurs. Hojbjerg has been impressive for Spurs this season and has been controlling the midfield for Spurs. He had the highest xT from his passes in the game against Palace and will be an important figure for them in the clash against Chelsea.

Spurs will be hoping for a return of their South American players who had to quarantine for ten days as Giovani Lo Celso, Cristian Romero and Davinson Sanchez will most probably be returning.

Chelsea have been in hot form since they have signed Belgian striker Romelu Lukaku and are second on the top with 10 points for four games. Chelsea beat Aston Villa last week comfortably and will look to make it back to back wins. They have managed to keep three clean-sheets and have an impressive defensive record as they have only conceded one goal in their four games.

Chelsea are third in the list for the most number of successful passes into the penalty area and are also third in the list for the most successful passes into the penalty area per 90 minutes. Chelsea have been very successful because of this because they have a target man like Romelu Lukaku who can guard the ball and make a quick turn to attempt a shot.

Hakim Ziyech also was an important figure in the Villa game as he made the most attacking actions for Chelsea as he attempted five smart passes into the final third and also put in five crosses into the penalty area. He also attempted 10 passes into the opposition 18-yard box.

Chelsea will look to make most of the factor that Spurs will be making a few changes to their line-up because of injuries as well as suspensions. Chelsea have been the better team in the season so far in terms of their dominance over the teams they have faces. Spurs on the other hand have scraped through their first three matches after holding on to a 1-0 lead.