In another fixture across London, a significantly rotated Nottingham Forest systematically dismantled a struggling Chelsea team and beat them 1-3. What are the consequences of that result for Tottenham who visit Stamford Bridge on the 19th of May?
The dust settles after the newest results from the last round of Premier League fixtures, and for Tottenham Hotspur, things went about as well as they could have. Their 2-1 win away to Aston Villa has them out of the relegation zone, thanks to West Ham dropping all three points to Brentford.
This means it’s all in Spurs’ hands now, and with West Ham having the significantly more difficult fixtures, Tottenham have become the favourites to stay up.
They could reasonably guarantee safety with at least another win, and they would be mathematically safe from relegation if Spurs win two out of their remaining three fixtures.
But, with Leeds fourth in the form table and Everton putting three goals past title-contending Manchester City on Monday, Spurs might actually look to Chelsea, bottom of the form table and with 6 losses on the bounce, as their best opportunity for survival.
Chelsea’s bad loss to Nottingham Forest on Monday has significant implications for the situation at the bottom of the table as well as for Spurs, who visit the West London club in two weeks.
So, here’s what it meant for Tottenham
The good news for Tottenham
There’s no other way to put it than Chelsea are currently the most in-crisis club in the Premier League. Their last six league fixtures have all been losses, and Forest’s result only plunged them deeper into chaos.
Chelsea’s failure to beat a heavily rotated Forest side mathematically voids their chances of reaching 5th place and the Champions League football that comes with it.
Although Aston Villa, currently in 5th place, could potentially extend Champions League spots down to 6th if they were to win the Europa League, Villa would have to first overturn a one-goal semi-final deficit to Nottingham Forest.
And with Forest rotating heavily just like Villa, something that Spurs were the beneficiaries of in their weekend fixture, the Tricky Trees are in pole position to get through to the final.
If Villa get knocked out on Thursday, Chelsea’s season is effectively over. The Blues still have to visit Anfield, and a bad loss there could plunge them even deeper into crisis.
If they can take advantage, Chelsea’s woes make them ripe for the picking for Tottenham.
The bad news for Spurs
Conversely, Nottingham Forest’s win all but guarantees their Premier League safety. Spurs’ win against Villa closed the gap to Forest to two points, but their win means that the gap is again extended to five points with three games to go.
Already for a few weeks, it looked like the relegation battle was a straight shootout between Tottenham and West Ham anyway.
While Forest still have some very difficult fixtures ahead of them, mainly a trip to Old Trafford and visits from Bournemouth and Newcastle, but with the gap to the drop zone at 6 points, the East Midlands club can probably rest easy with their league status secure.
The ugly for Tottenham
Now here’s the sad and uncomfortable truth that, to an extent, invalidates everything we’ve said about Chelsea thus far.
Historically, regardless of how awful Chelsea had been in the league, their derby against Spurs seems to ignite the motivation that the West London club needs to beat their northern rivals.
One need only recall the painful memories of the Battle of the Bridge when Chelsea ended the title dreams of Tottenham Hotspur by holding them to a two-all draw, despite the fact that, with their league position secure, they also theoretically had nothing to play for.
Spurs only won 23 fixtures at Stamford Bridge from their 88 London derbies played there.
Over the years, Spurs, of course, had to contend with truly world-class sides assembled for the almost limitless funds of Roman Abramovich. But their record hasn’t been much better since Chelsea’s new owners, Blue Co., took over either, with Spurs last beating Chelsea in a 2017 league meeting.