🏏 Tue, 19 May 2026 20:15 BST
Chelsea
vs
Tottenham Hotspur
4-2-3-1 vs 4-2-3-1
Substitutes
Substitutes
Match Preview
- Premier League Matchday 37, where 10th-placed Chelsea (49 points from 36 games) and 17th-placed Tottenham (38 points from 36 games) collide. Chelsea are slumping with 1 draw and 4 losses in their last five (L-L-L-L-D), suffering three straight home defeats to Manchester City, United and Nottingham Forest. Tottenham, with 2 wins, 2 draws and 1 loss in their last five (L-D-W-W-D), have sunk to 17th, and both sides look set to end the season in disappointment.
- The first meeting this season was on Matchday 10 at Tottenham's home, where Chelsea won 0-1. For Chelsea, struggling at home, this match is a chance to avenge that. They sit 33 points behind leaders Arsenal (82 points from 37 games) and Tottenham 44 points behind, both well off the title race.
- Chelsea's 4-2-3-1 features Cole Palmer (a Manchester City academy product who scored 22 goals in his debut season after his move) as the playmaker in attacking midfield, with Moises Caicedo (a British-record 115 million pound transfer from Brighton) and Andrey Santos (a 20-year-old who joined from Vasco da Gama) forming the double pivot. Up front, Liam Delap (signed from Ipswich for 30 million pounds) leads the line, flanked by Pedro Neto (who joined from Wolves, Portugal international) and Enzo Fernandez (a 2022 World Cup winner and British-record transfer).
- Tottenham also adopt a 4-2-3-1, with the base of midfield manned by the large pairing of Joao Palhinha (on loan from Bayern Munich, 190cm) and Rodrigo Bentancur (a three-time Serie A champion at Juventus, 187cm). At attacking midfield, Conor Gallagher (who joined from Atletico Madrid in January 2026, a Chelsea academy product) starts against his former club, with both flanks taken by Mathys Tel (a 19-year-old permanent signing from Bayern) and Randal Kolo Muani (on loan from PSG, scorer in the World Cup final).
- Tottenham's Japan centre-back Kota Takai is a 20-year-old who joined from Kawasaki Frontale; combining a 190cm frame with pace, he is a talent who was a regular in the J.League from his teens. He is out of the squad this time but is expected to be a centre-back who shapes the club's future. The starting centre-backs are the large pairing of Micky van de Ven (193cm, boasting some of the Premier League's best pace) and Kevin Danso (190cm, the Austria international signed permanently from Lens).
- The focus is on the second-half introductions of Chelsea's bench option Alejandro Garnacho (a 40 million pound move from Manchester United, 2 goals and 2 assists in his last two) and Tottenham's bench option James Maddison (signed from Leicester City, a set-piece specialist). With both sides far from the relegation battle and European qualification this season, it becomes a contest for pride and momentum into next season.