Chelsea look ahead to facing Tottenham in their first game back after the international break, in a fixture which has thrown up some of the most entertaining games the Premier League has ever seen.
Earlier this season the Blues came from 2-0 down to beat their arch-rivals 4-3 away from home, with Cole Palmer ‘destroying’ his opponents alongside goals from Jadon Sancho and Enzo Fernandez.
Chelsea were also big winners against a then-unbeaten Ange Postecoglu side. Nicolas Jackson scored a hat-trick while their opponents self-destructed with two red cards.
The most iconic of the previous fixtures though is undoubtedly when the two sides met in May of 2016, a game which has gone down in history as the ‘Battle of the Bridge’.
Photo by Shaun Botterill/Getty Images
Photo by Shaun Botterill/Getty Images
Chelsea’s iconic ‘Battle of the Bridge’ vs Tottenham
Spurs were desperately fighting to keep the fight up to remain in the race for the title, as Leicester City closed in on capping off their own legendary season.
They got off to the perfect start at Stamford Bridge, scoring twice before half-time and looking good for the three points.
A fiery affair had been bubbling away, and referee Mark Clattenburg ended up giving out 12 yellow cards. Branislav Ivanovic, Willian, and John Obi Mikel were booked for the Blues.
In a season where there was very little for Chelsea fans to shout about, goals from Gary Cahill and Eden Hazard gave them a point, but perhaps more importantly ended their rivals’ chances of winning the title.
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The game is well remembered for Hazard’s marvellous strike, however a factor that is normally forgotten is that the Blues were missing their number one goalkeeper for this game.
Photo by Darren Walsh/Chelsea FC via Getty Images
Photo by Darren Walsh/Chelsea FC via Getty Images
Asmir Begovic’s important role in the ‘Battle of the Bridge’
Thibaut Courtois was ruled out due to injury, leaving Asmir Begovic the responsibility of starting and looking to keep out the likes of Harry Kane.
The Bosnian made three big saves, including a brilliant one to deny Ryan Mason just as Chelsea were launching their comeback.
Begovic played just 19 games in the Premier League for the Blues, and was mostly seen as a reliable number two to Courtois.
However, the iconic fixture against Tottenham saw him play a huge role in the Blues again getting one over Spurs, with the hope now being that they can go one better than the point in their next game under Enzo Maresca.