Tottenham’s hopes of qualifying for the Champions League were severely damaged as they lost to Chelsea 2-0 at Stamford Bridge in the Premier League.
With just one game remaining, Ange Postecoglou’s team trails fourth-place Aston Villa by seven points.
Mauricio Pochettino’s team won against his old team thanks to goals from Trevoh Chalobah and Nicolas Jackson, increasing their chances of making it to Europe.
Read Also‘I really feel for Chelsea without Abramovich’ – Guus Hiddink:
Spurs were far from playing at their fluid, daring best in this match, and they hardly ever applied any real pressure to a Chelsea defence that had already recorded the team’s worst league defensive record in over thirty years.
Rather, the Spurs’ rearguard appeared unsure and feeble. First, after Chelsea took a well-earned lead in the first half, Chalobah was given a clear opportunity to run at Conor Gallagher’s cross.
Then, with 18 minutes remaining Cole Palmer’s 30-yard free kick thudded off the underside of the crossbar, setting up Jackson for a simple pounce, while Son Heung-min and Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg did little more than stand and watch.
Chelsea moved up to eighth place, their highest since Pochettino took over in July, and they have a realistic chance of qualifying for the Europa League.
Meanwhile, Tottenham’s hopes of finishing in the top four are fading.
By far, the hosts had gotten off to a livelier start. Four minutes later, Jackson was chasing Cristian Romero after Mykhailo Mudryk put the ball in the left channel.
The ball was creeping nearer the line when Micky van de Ven, who was covering, scooped it to safety after Guglielmo Vicario stood up and softened the blow to Jackson’s attempt.
Midway through the half, Noni Madueke, who had just scored at Villa on Saturday, came dangerously near.
He went by two Spurs players and skidded infield from the right touchline before hitting a shot that narrowly missed the crossbar.
The first goal was then scored.
With a free-kick that soared past everyone, Gallagher robbed Chalobah by going around the back and rising high over Vicario to head the ball in.
Even after VAR reviewed the play for offside and Marc Cucurella’s foul, Chelsea’s lead remained.
The hosts took the lead with a solid attempt from the energetic Mudryk, curling just past a post.
The Ukrainian had dominated the left flank with vision and precise, clinical deliveries in the first half. Late in the half, Romero was set open at the back post by a free-kick from Pedro Porro, but he thudded his header over.
Chalobah then sprang in to divert Pape Sarr’s attempt beyond.
They were the most obvious gaps that an atypically ineffective Spurs attack had produced.
Postecoglou’s team caged Chelsea in their own half for fifteen minutes following the interval, but they generated little real threat.
A rare chance at goal in a lacklustre performance came when Porro got in down the right and forced Djordje Petrovic to beat the ball away at his near post.
James Maddison was summoned from the bench to try and light a Tottenham spark, but Chelsea continued to chase, harry and hound, crowding out what little space opened up in their defensive half.
Instead it was them that put the game to bed. Cucurella was fouled by Dejan Kulusevski 30 yards out, Palmer’s audacious free-kick cracked the bar and Jackson was first on the scene to make it two.