Andy Robertson of Tottenham Hotspur reacts during the Premier League 2026/27 match between Chelsea FC and Tottenham Hotspur at Stamford Bridge
Photo by Ryan Pierse/Getty Images
Xabi Alonso’s first game against Tottenham in the Stamford Bridge dugout could not have gone much worse. Chelsea were outplayed from start to finish and can have no complaints about suffering their first home defeat to Spurs since 2018.
This defeat will hurt Chelsea fans even more because Tottenham have been struggling so much recently. After two consecutive 17th-place finishes, Spurs had won just one game this season before travelling to West London on Saturday.
Ahead of two difficult fixtures against Liverpool and Manchester United next week, Alonso’s coaching team must quickly evaluate what went wrong against Spurs. Tottenham left-back Andy Robertson has just made their job easier by explaining how Roberto De Zerbi outsmarted the Spaniard.
Andy Robertson explains how Roberto De Zerbi tactics made Chelsea ‘uncomfortable’
Xabi Alonso has earned praise for getting the best out of Chelsea’s front three, Joao Pedro, Cole Palmer and Morgan Rogers, this season. The Blues have consistently let the opposition control possession, counterattacking at pace when they win the ball, with plenty of space to run into.
This approach has often involved going direct to Pedro and asking him to hold the ball up so that the other attackers can join him. However, with Pedro absent from the squad and Geovany Quenda in the starting XI, the Blues struggled to play directly.
This allowed Tottenham to enjoy a remarkable 69% possession as Roberto De Zerbi’s side took a completely different approach. Spurs were brave enough to play out from the back despite Chelsea pressing them high, but their defenders also went direct when they had no other options.
Spurs winger Mohammed Kudus held the ball up better than any Chelsea player at Stamford Bridge, while Mathys Tel gave them an option to stretch the Blues’ defence. Meanwhile, Tottenham’s three-man midfield of Sandro Tonali, Mateus Fernandes and James Maddison outnumbered Moises Caicedo and Jordan Henderson, making it easier to play through the middle of the pitch.
“It was more about us working on being confident with the ball,” Andy Robertson summarised Spurs’ successful approach in his post-match interview with Sky Sports. “We knew Chelsea are such a good team at pressing and they want to get off to a fast start. They came with a lot of bodies in our half of the pitch, and it was up to us to try to have the confidence to do that but also have outballs if we didn’t.
“How many times in the first half did Antonin Kinsky kick the ball into Mo Kudus? And he was just so strong and managed to get us up the pitch. It really helped us having different options.
“I thought Mathys Tel was outstanding in front of me. They gave us a lot of options in behind and holding the ball up, but I also thought our midfield was outstanding. The defence was good with the ball at our feet as well.
“I think we were confident with the ball; we moved them around and brought them into places they were probably a bit uncomfortable. I’m glad we showed the confidence; Stamford Bridge is not an easy place to come — we all know that.”
For Alonso and Chelsea, it should not be a case of tearing apart everything they have worked on and starting afresh with a new idea. After all, these tactics helped them secure an impressive away win at Everton just last weekend.
However, the Spaniard must reconsider how to approach games without Pedro, with many suggesting he should start Danny Welbeck instead. Alonso also needs to be more proactive during matches, as his tentativeness only helped Spurs gain confidence until it seemed only a matter of time before they scored.