The eye-catching game on Wednesday night comes at Stamford Bridge and Tom Carnduff picks out two best bets for Chelsea v Tottenham.
Recommended bets
2pts Over 11.5 corners at 17/10
1pt Jorginho to be shown a card at 7/2
For advised bookmakers and each-way terms, visit our transparent tipping record
Chelsea v Tottenham (Stamford Bridge, 2000 GMT, BT Sport 1)
We thought it would be a straightforward victory for Manchester City over Chelsea in the Carabao Cup final, but Maurizio Sarri's men eventually lost out on penalties.
It was a positive performance on the whole and the Blues looked like the side who could win the game in the second-half. However, an incident with goalkeeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga in the closing moments caught the headlines.
😲 The Maurizio Sarri vs Kepa Arrizabalaga incident gets more uncomfortable every time you watch it!#CFC #CarabaoCupFinal pic.twitter.com/U0nowgj6FN
— Sporting Life Football (@SportingLifeFC) February 24, 2019
Sarri opted for a substitution - bringing on Willy Caballero in place of Kepa who had gone down with cramp a few times in extra-time. However, with Caballero changed and the board up, the player simply refused to leave the pitch.
Speaking to the media on Tuesday prior to this game against Tottenham, Sarri said the goalkeeper must be mentally ready to play, but paused to consider his answer.
The 60-year-old Blues boss said: "He has to (be ready). He made a mistake, a big mistake. There are some consequences. If the consequence is to play, he has to be ready to play.
"If the consequence is the bench, he has to be ready to go to the bench."
Title outsiders Spurs are next and they'll be eager to get back to winning ways after defeat against Burnley last time out. They still remain close to the top-two, although it appears more likely that Liverpool or City will lift the Premier League trophy in May.
That game saw it's own controversy with Tottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino angrily confronting referee Mike Dean after the full-time whistle. He has since said he will accept an FA charge regarding his conduct.
😡 There is angry and then there is Mauricio Pochettino!!pic.twitter.com/7CeJ1pRi6Q
— Sporting Life Football (@SportingLifeFC) February 23, 2019
"I will accept that charge. Watching after on the video from the TV, my behaviour, I think I need to accept the charge from the FA," Pochettino, who will now wait to find out his punishment from the governing body.
"At the same time I need to apologise to Mike Dean. Right or wrong in the way that I wanted to complain, I cannot behave in that way.
"Of course I want to apologise to Mike Dean, all the referees who were involved there. I think it's not a way to behave and of course I'm going to accept the charge from the FA.
"My behaviour was public and now I want to apologise in a public way too. I think it's unfair. I think in private is not important because my behaviour was public and I need to apologise to him and all the officials in public too."
Both managers will be wanting to put these incidents behind them though as they focus on their aims in the league. As ever, this has all the ingredients to be another entertaining derby between the two, and one that could end with the points shared.
Betting guide
Score prediction: Chelsea 2-2 Tottenham (Sky Bet odds: 12/1)
This a fixture that, historically, is full of goals. The last five meetings between these two where Chelsea have been the home side have seen at least over 2.5 goals, with the same applying to five of their last six in all competitions.
The questions will continue to surround the Kepa incident and the suggestion that Sarri has lost the dressing room is an interesting one. However, his side still put in a positive performance at Wembley despite a 6-0 hammering just weeks earlier.
The draw is the best option to explore in the outright market, but when it comes to a correct score, it's a game where the net should be struck on multiple occasions.
Best bet: Over 11.5 corners at 17/10
Like goals, this is also a fixture where we see a high corner count and we're looking to the statistics here. Over the last five where Chelsea have been the home side, we've seen an average of 12 corners.
That was also the figure when these two last met, a win for Chelsea on penalties in the semi-final of the Carabao Cup, while there were also 12 when the Blues also beat their rivals in the semi-finals of the 2017 FA Cup.
Both sides possess quality in attack and that's why we could see plenty of corners here. They are also in the top-half for corners taken in the Premier League this season.
Best bet: Jorginho to be shown a card at 7/2
This selection is available at a general price of 2/1 but Bet365's price of 7/2 stands out the most. This is a fixture that has seen cards in recent meetings with four yellows in each of their two legs of the semi-final of the Carabao Cup.
The defensive midfielder has picked up seven yellow cards in all competitions this season, five of which coming in the Premier League, which included one in their last league game. He was also booked at Wembley on Sunday.
In all honesty, he was lucky to not receive punishment with the game only seconds old as he collided with Sergio Aguero. That saw one of the quickest free-kicks awarded in Wembley history.
His efforts in the final did earn praise from Pep Guardiola though, with the City boss saying afterwards "it was a tight game, we knew it would be as a final. One of the toughest teams I have ever faced in my time. How Jorginho and Kante pressed was incredible. It is not easy to fight them.
"I was impressed with the way Chelsea defended, they were well organised and one of the toughest teams I’ve faced in my career."
That pressing could see the midfield overstep the mark again though and a price of 7/2 is well worth taking on a booking for the Chelsea man.
Opta facts
- Chelsea have only lost one of their last 32 home games against Spurs in all competitions (W20 D11). However, that defeat did come in this exact fixture last season (1-3).
- Tottenham have won three of their last four Premier League games against Chelsea (L1), as many as they had in their previous 20 against them (W3 D9 L8).
- Tottenham are looking to win three consecutive league games against Chelsea for the first time since a run of five between March 1961 and September 1963.
- Chelsea haven’t lost both league games against Tottenham in a single campaign since 1970-71.
- Only Arsenal (16 in 8 games) have won more points in Premier League London derbies this season than Tottenham (15 in 6 games).
- Chelsea have failed to score in three of their last four Premier League games. Their last three league games have produced a total of 15 goals (5 per game), with the Blues beating Huddersfield 5-0 and suffering 0-4 and 0-6 defeats against Bournemouth and Man City respectively.
- Only two teams in top flight history have had a longer run than Spurs (27) from the start of a season without a draw – West Brom in 1919-20 (29) and Stoke City in 1895-96 (30).
- Mauricio Pochettino has won four Premier League games against Chelsea as Tottenham boss – more than every other Spurs manager combined in the competition (Martin Jol x1, Harry Redknapp x2).
- Harry Kane has ended on the losing side in three of the last seven Premier League games he’s scored in (W4) – he lost just three of the first 76 Premier League games in which he found the net (W62 D11 L3).
- Christian Eriksen has been involved in 15 goals in 17 Premier League games played on Wednesday (7 goals, 8 assists), including two assists against Chelsea in January 2017.
Odds correct at 1700 GMT (26/02/19)
