Chelsea recorded their third Premier League win in a row with a 5-1 midweek demolition of Southampton as Enzo Maresca looks like he has given the Blues a new lease of life.
They have scored 57 goals in all competitions this season, as the Italian’s attacking philosophy appears to be paying off.
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Tottenham Hotspur are up next. Ange Postecoglou’s side are the definition of Jekyll and Hyde. One minute, they can record two wins over Manchester City in the space of a couple of weeks, while a week later, they are losing to Bournemouth.
As for the Blues, the five-star showing against the Saints was impressive, as was one player in particular…
Noni Madueke's stats vs Southampton
Noni Madueke has been in fine form this term, scoring six times and recording two assists for the Blues.
Against the south coast side, the English winger was excellent. Not only did he score and get an assist, but the former PSV Eindhoven man also created one big chance, made one key pass, succeeded with 50% of his dribble attempts and took seven shots in total during a productive display.
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He is blossoming into a fine player and one that Maresca can count upon to produce the goods during games like these.
With games coming thick and fast in the run-up to the festive period, however, could the manager perhaps drop Madueke to the bench in order to keep him fresh while bringing someone else into the starting XI?
That someone else is Jadon Sancho, who enjoyed a decent cameo in midweek.
The Chelsea star who could replace Madueke
The on-loan star came on for the final 18 minutes against the Saints, scoring the club’s fifth goal with just minutes left, along with completing 89% of his passes and losing possession just twice.
He could be the ideal player to terrorise Spurs defender Destiny Udogie this weekend. In Spurs’ recent draw against Fulham, the defender lost possession 16 times during the game, while winning just 50% of his total duels contested.
Sancho has the creative talent to cause plenty of problems for the Spurs backline, that’s for sure, and Udogie could be in for a torrid afternoon if the former Borussia Dortmund star is unleashed from the start.
Destiny Udogie for Tottenham
The 24-year-old has played eight times in the top flight this season for Chelsea. During these appearances, he has registered three assists, created two big chances, averaged one key pass per game and succeeded with 1.8 dribbles per game.
Jadon Sancho's stats this season
Metric
Goals
Assists
Big chances created
Key passes per 90
Successful dribbles per 90
Via Sofascore
This last stat could cause Udogie plenty of concern, as Sancho will be a constant menace up and down the flank against Spurs.
Previously hailed as a “phenomenon” by talent scout Jacek Kulig, Sancho finally looks like he is getting back to his best under Maresca, a manager who trusts him to perform on the big occasions.
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A win against the North Londoners will see them edge ever closer to Liverpool at the top of the table. While Maresca has shut down notions of a title challenge, it will be hard to agree with this if they defeat Spurs.
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Chelsea are looking to add even more firepower to their potent forward line in January.