Spurs head to Stamford Bridge for a Premier League game against a Blues side still dealing with the fallout from the Carabao Cup final.
Wednesday night sees two London rivals lock horns in the Premier League as Tottenham Hotspur head to Stamford Bridge to face Chelsea and, frankly, it couldn’t have come at a better time for Mauricio Pochettino’s side.
Following Kepa Arrizabalaga‘s refusal to be substituted by Blues manager Maurizio Sarri as penalties loomed in the Carabao Cup final against Manchester City on Sunday, there has been plenty of discussion and speculation regarding the future of both the player and the coach.
Although the 24-year-old goalkeeper has apologised and was fined a week’s wages for his actions, it remains to be seen whether he will now lose his starting spot to Willy Caballero – he of several blunders for Argentina at the 2018 World Cup – but that seems to be only the tip of the iceberg in terms of Chelsea issues that could benefit Spurs.
According to The Sun, the two goalkeepers had a blazing row in the dressing room in which the Spaniard reportedly told Caballero that he was the better goalkeeper, even though Sarri had told the Argentine that he would be going on for the shoot-out in a tactical switch.
Another reported point of contention within the Chelsea ranks is regarding the captaincy, with some fans calling for Cesar Azpilicueta to be stripped of the captain’s armband in the wake of the Kepa row (Daily Mail) and urging Sarri to pick Eden Hazard.
Meanwhile, football agent Saif Rubie, who was instrumental in Antonio Rudiger signing for the Blues from Roma back in 2017, has been reported by The Mirror as having posted his support for the Germany international on Twitter, though the tweets seem to have since been deleted.
All in all, it suggests that not only could there be conflict between players and manager, but also between players, and with all this alleged infighting within the ranks, Spurs would really stand to benefit when they head to West London on Wednesday night.
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