Whether it’s the Battle of the Bridge, Tottenham Hotspur’s last piece of silverware or even Ange Postecoglou’s tactical stubbornness last season, Spurs v Chelsea rarely disappoints. And as the two London rivals prepare to square off yet again in the Premier League, we’ve taken a look back at the best games between the two sides.
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2 ByStephan GeorgiouAug 23, 2024 10 Chelsea 2-2 Tottenham (2022) Thomas Tuchel and Antonio Conte's firm handshake
It feels somewhat strange that it’s been just two years since Thomas Tuchel and Antonio Conte created a famous Premier League moment as Chelsea and Tottenham battled out a dramatic 2-2 draw.
It was the Blues who struck first through Kalidou Koulibaly before Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg’s effort levelled things up just after the hour mark.
The drama really began to heat up when Conte and Tuchel were booked over a disagreement about Anthony Taylor’s failure to award Chelsea a free kick following Rodrigo Bentancur’s challenge on Kai Havertz prior to the equaliser.
Tuchel then stoked the fire by sprinting past Conte to celebrate Reece James’ strike to regain the Blues’ lead, only for Kane to head home a late leveller.
If those at Stamford Bridge thought the drama was about to end there, a firm handshake between both managers soon proved otherwise, resulting in a red card apiece.
9 Chelsea 3-3 Tottenham (2007) Blues bounce back to earn replay
Taking their battle from the Premier League to the FA Cup, Chelsea were forced to come from behind to earn a dramatic replay against Spurs in 2007, albeit one that Jose Mourinho wanted to avoid.
The majority of the drama arrived in a frantic first half, with Dimitar Berbatov’s effort handing his side a swift lead in the opening five minutes, only for Frank Lampard to level things up in the 22nd.
The sides weren’t level for long thanks to Michael Essien’s own goal and Hossam Ghaly’s strike, giving the Lilywhites some breathing room.
The Blues looked down for the count up until the very last when Lampard rose to find his brace with 19 minutes remaining and Kalou equalised in the remaining four minutes of normal time to force a replay, which they went on to win 2-1.
8 Chelsea 4-2 Tottenham (2017) Matic stunner shows Spurs the door
Another FA Cup thriller to remember, it was unlikely star Nemanja Matic who stole the headlines in the semi-final clash between Chelsea and Spurs in 2017, as the Blues advanced to the final at Wembley.
Level after the hour mark thanks to Willian’s first-half brace and a goal apiece from Harry Kane and Dele Alli, Chelsea took things up a level and soon soared to victory.
Eden Hazard regained his side’s lead – as he often did – with 15 minutes of normal time remaining before a loose ball fell the way of Matic, who simply could not resist the chance to unleash what proved to be an unstoppable thunderbolt.
For all of their efforts and Jermaine Jenas’ verdict that they had been the better side, Spurs found themselves dumped out of the FA Cup by their rivals once again.
7 Tottenham 1-4 Chelsea, 2023 Jackson punishes chaotic nine-player Spurs
In between Nicolas Jackson keeping the linesman busy and earning what felt like an inevitable hat-trick, the main question that many sent the way of Spurs was whether it was brave, stupid or honourable to stick to their high-line principles when down to nine men against a Chelsea side that could not believe their luck.
The Lilywhites initially found the lead as early as the sixth minute through Dejan Kulusevski, but things never got better from there. Instead, the chaos began.
Brennan Johnson’s goal was ruled out by VAR, as was Raheem Sterling’s, before Moises Caicedo suffered the same controversial fate. But in amongst the constant line-drawing at Stockley Park, Cristian Romero was caught red-handed on the replay of Caicedo’s effort and was given his marching orders following a reckless challenge on Enzo Fernandez.
Cole Palmer’s equaliser from the penalty spot finally denied VAR the chance to intervene, as did Destiny Udogie’s second yellow card of the evening after the break.
Down to nine men and level, some would rightly assume that the wise tactic would have been to hold what you have, but that’s not the way of Postecoglou, who forced his side to suffer an eventual and inevitable Jackson hat-trick.
6 Tottenham 1-5 Chelsea (2012) Chelsea fuel goalline technology debate
Whilst the main topic of debate these days is whether to scrap VAR, it wasn’t so long ago that the Premier League was crying out for the goalline technology which has since proved to be a great success.
When Chelsea put five past London rivals Spurs in merciless fashion at Wembley, it was once again at the centre of debate when referee Martin Atkinson awarded Juan Mata’s effort despite replays appearing to show that the ball has not crossed the line.
From there, even Gareth Bale’s response to Didier Drogba and Mata’s initial strikes couldn’t stand in the way of a Chelsea victory, who sealed a five-star display through Ramires, Lampard and Florent Malouda in the second half to send the Blues to the FA Cup final yet again.
5 Chelsea 4-3 Tottenham (1994) Stein wins seven-goal thriller
To find one of the most high-scoring games between Chelsea and Tottenham, we have to go all the way back to 1994 when the Blues defeated their London rivals 4-3 thanks to Mark Stein’s last-minute winner from the penalty spot.
Once the floodgates were open, they never slammed shut at Stamford Bridge to create a true Premier League thriller.
Spurs initially thought they were on course to secure victory when Steve Sedgley opened the scoring in the 17th minute before Jason Dozzell instantly doubled their lead a minute later.
But that was only the start, with Chelsea fighting back through Mal Donaghy, Stein’s equaliser and John Spencer’s 40th-minute effort to turn the game on its head before half-time.
Adding one last crescendo, Andrew Gray’s penalty to level things up in the 73rd minute almost foreshadowed what was to come, given that Stein sealed a dramatic brace from 12 yards to find a last-minute winner for Chelsea.
4 Chelsea 1-2 Tottenham (2008) Spurs secure silverware
It may be difficult to imagine these days given how it’s become the stick to poke those in north London with, but 16 years ago, Spurs found themselves lifting the League Cup after defeating Chelsea at Wembley to end a nine-year chase for silverware.
Little did they know, of course, that their victory over the Blues would be their last trophy win to this day.
What that does mean, however, is that as things stand, Jonathan Woodgate holds quite the place in the Spurs history books after scoring an extra-time winner to defeat the Blues all those years ago.
3 Tottenham 5-3 Chelsea (2015) Kane shocks leaders Chelsea
Despite eventually being crowned Premier League champions in the 2014/15 campaign, Chelsea couldn’t find a way past Mauricio Pochettino’s side at White Hart Lane, as Harry Kane inspired the Lilywhites to a thumping 5-3 victory, scoring twice.
The Blues initially set course for another win over their rivals after Diego Costa found the opener, only for Kane to level things up after half an hour.
By the time the break rolled around, the Lilywhites had flipped the game on its head to lead 3-1 courtesy of Danny Rose and Andros Townsend from the spot. As if things then couldn’t get any worse, Kane found his second and Spurs’ fourth right after half-time.
Eventual champions Chelsea had been given their wake-up call in violent fashion even as goals from Eden Hazard and John Terry in between Nacer Chadli for Spurs’ fifth restored some pride.
2 Tottenham 4-4 Chelsea Spurs and Chelsea share points in eight-goal thriller
A year after they shared a stunning 3-3 draw in the FA Cup, Tottenham and Chelsea entertained us all in the Premier League with a 4-4 draw.
An eight-goal thriller which began with Drogba’s opener within three minutes and Woodgate’s leveller just nine minutes later, the eight-goal thriller remains one of the best games between the two London clubs.
Despite the early goals, the majority of the drama came in the second period. With Chelsea in the lead thanks to Michael Essien’s goal in the 20th minute, those at White Hart Lane were forced to wait until just before the hour mark for the drama to pick up again, courtesy of Joe Cole. The midfielder extended his side’s lead to commence a dramatic Spurs comeback.
Coming through Berbatov and Tom Huddlestone, Spurs stunningly had the scores level with 15 minutes to go.
However, in a manner which can only be described as vintage Spurs, Cole found his brace just minutes later to hand Chelsea a 4-3 lead before Robbie Keane finished the drama with two minutes of normal time remaining to end the game at four apiece.
1 Chelsea 2-2 Tottenham (2016) Battle of the Bridge ends Spurs title dream
It may not be the most high-scoring game on this list, but it is arguably the best, so much so that it even has its own name.
The Battle of the Bridge took place on the field of Stamford Bridge and featured as many as 12 yellow cards between the two sides – and a crowning moment for Leicester City. It remains one of the most entertaining spectacles in one of the most historic seasons of English football.
In truth, the Blues had no right to even secure a point against a high-flying Spurs side that year, especially whilst they sat in mid-table and were quickly 2-0 down against the Lilywhites. Kane and Son Heung-min’s efforts left their side on course for three points, only for Eden Hazard’s best form to reveal itself for the first time that season.
Following Gary Cahill’s goal to halve the deficit, Hazard took hold of proceedings and curled a sensational effort beyond Hugo Lloris to secure a point for Chelsea and an odds-defying Premier League title for Leicester. In a battle between Chelsea and Spurs, it was the Foxes who truly came out on top.
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