
Tottenham
have the attributes to cause Chelsea problems in Sunday’s Sky Live Capital
One Cup final – but may pay for their midweek Europa League exertions, says
Jamie Redknapp.
Chelsea go into this weekend’s Capital One Cup final as favourites, but
Tottenham will be looking back to that remarkable 5-3 success on New Year’s
Day as inspiration for a Wembley win.
Harry Kane was brilliant. He destroyed Chelsea, scoring two goals at White
Hart Lane. Gary Cahill and John Terry couldn’t handle him.
But it wasn’t just Kane – Spurs got their tactics right that day.
They’ll look back on that match and realise how well they pressed Chelsea,
how they put their visitors’ back four under pressure, and played a direct
game up to Kane, working off the second balls.
That’s what they’ll try to do again on Sunday.
Of course, they rode their luck at times - Chelsea could have been awarded a
penalty when they were 1-0 up - but there’s no doubt Spurs found a way to
unsettle Jose Mourinho’s side.
How will Chelsea respond? I think Kurt Zouma will play instead of Gary
Cahill, who struggled against Kane, but a trickier problem for Mourinho is
how to cover the absence of the suspended Nemanja Matic.
We know the stats well - Chelsea have lost only one match with him in the
side this season - but Jon Obi Mikel, when he has come in, has not had a
great record this season in the big games.
Chelsea, though, will hope they can hurt Tottenham at the other end of the
pitch and I expect Mauricio Pochettino will be particularly concerned about
Eden Hazard.
The Belgian always looked the most likely to make something happen for
Chelsea in that 5-3 game and has had a great season.
Spurs will have to find a way to contain him or limit his involvement, given
the open spaces at Wembley he can exploit.
How Kyle Walker deals with Hazard will be fascinating to watch. We know the
England man has great pace and loves to go forward, but does he have the
defensive skills to contain the tricky winger?
Another key battle will be Diego Costa against the Tottenham centre backs.
Jan Vertonghen will be up for the contest, I’m sure, but I reckon Pochettino
may go with Eric Dier over Federico Fazio and it will be interesting to see
how the young centre defender - who I reckon has great potential - deals
with the experienced Chelsea striker.
Ryan Mason’s performance will also be a key factor in how Tottenham fare.
I’m a big fan of him and his energy has been so important for Spurs this
season. But how will he match up against his Chelsea opponents in midfield
in the biggest game of his career so far?
He stood out on New Year’s Day but, two months on, this is another test
entirely.
Open game
Just like us neutrals, I’m sure Pochettino is hoping for an open game in the
final, and with Matic out, that could be the case. There’s likely to be
goals, too – as well as the 5-3, Chelsea won 3-0 against Spurs at Stamford
Bridge earlier in the season.
However, more than those two fixtures, I feel it is the past few days which
will play a big part in the outcome. A Thursday night away game in Europe
ahead of the Capital One Cup final was the last thing Spurs needed. To have
lost at Fiorentina makes it even tougher for them to be at their absolute
best this weekend.
Unlike Mourinho, Pochettino only found out on Friday morning which players
will be fit and firing for Sunday, while the Chelsea team have been able to
focus on the final all week long.
This is a hard game to call, given the extreme results we’ve seen in the
past two fixtures between the sides, but I can’t help feeling that tiredness
will tell for Spurs.
I’m predicting a draw in 90 minutes, but Chelsea to lift trophy. That would
make it 10 wins in 12 major finals for Mourinho - an incredible record - and
give him significant revenge for that shock on New Year’s Day.