Tottenham v Chelsea

TEAM NEWS

Tottenham boss Harry Redknapp has said Gareth Bale is “very doubtful” because of an ankle injury.

Jermain Defoe may also miss out with a hamstring problem, Emmanuel Adebayor has a minor foot injury. Aaron Lennon is absent due to a hamstring tear.

Chelsea captain John Terry has overcome the Achilles problem he suffered in training earlier this week.

Ramires has recovered from a leg injury but fellow Brazilian David Luiz is still sidelined with a knee problem.

MATCH PREVIEW

The days when Chelsea took to calling White Hart Lane ‘Three Point Lane’ following an extraordinary run of results against Tottenham are long gone. It is six years since the Blues won at Spurs’ ground in the league and, given the two sides’ respective displays so far this season, Harry Redknapp’s team will go into the match as favourites.

After all, this is Tottenham’s second-best start to a season in their 129-year history, surpassed only by their double-winning team of 1960-61. There were fears that defeat to Stoke in their previous game could derail their start, but Sunday’s resolute win over Sunderland gave further credence to Sir Alex Ferguson’s belief that Tottenham have been the top-flight’s most impressive team this season.

For a team that relies on pace from the wings, being deprived of Gareth Bale before kick-off and then losing fellow wideman Aaron Lennon midway through the first-half could have left Spurs in the lurch. But a tactical reshuffle from Redknapp proved to be a masterstroke and Roman Pavlyuchenko stepped off the bench to score the winner.

After their crucial win over Manchester City, Chelsea were brought back down to earth with a bump as strugglers Wigan nicked a late draw.

Every step forward that Andre Villas-Boas takes in the early stages of his managerial career at Chelsea seems to be followed by one back. Lose at Tottenham and any dreams of handing demanding owner Roman Abramovich the title in his first season at Stamford Bridge will seemingly be all but gone.

One player Abramovich will be admiring from the stands will be Tottenham’s Luka Modric, for whom the clubs fought out a long and protracted transfer battle this summer. Tottenham won and the Croatian must now be feeling quite glad that his move was vetoed by Spurs chairman Daniel Levy, given the turmoil and unrest that has beset the Blues this season.

MATCH FACTS

Head-to-head

• Chelsea have not won at White Hart Lane in their last five visits since a 2-0 victory in 2005. Prior to that they had gone 17 league matches undefeated at White Hart Lane, a run that stretched back to August 1987.
• Tottenham went an English record 32 league games without a win in this fixture until a 2-1 victory at White Hart Lane in November 2006.
• Victory for Tottenham would be their 50th of all time over Chelsea in all competitions. Chelsea have 60 wins.

Tottenham

• The 1956/57 season is the only previous time Tottenham have won 11 and drawn one of their first 15 matches. That season they finished second, eight points behind Manchester United’s ‘Busby Babes’. Only once have they started a season better than this – the double-winning campaign of 1960-61.
• Each of Roman Pavlyuchenko’s last four Premier League goals have been scored from outside the box, after none of his first 16 were.
• Against Sunderland, Tottenham failed to have a shot on target in the first half of a home game in the league for the first time since August 2008 (1-2 v Sunderland).
• Tottenham have conceded 997 goals in Premier League history.

Chelsea

• Four of the last six goals Chelsea have conceded in the league have come after the 85th minute.
• Daniel Sturridge has scored eight league goals this season – double that of Didier Drogba and Fernando Torres combined.
• Chelsea have used all three permitted substitutions in every league match this season, the only team in the top flight to do so.
• Didier Drogba needs three goals to total 100 in the Premier League for the Blues, and just one to total 150 for the club in all competitions.