Another huge derby day is upon us as Chelsea and Tottenham tonight face off at Stamford Bridge in what is historically been a bad-tempered – and action-packed – affair.
The Blues’ form has faltered of late, taking just six points from their last five Premier League matches before the international break, but they will be bolstered by the returning Cole Palmer, Nicolas Jackson, and Noni Madueke.
Jackson and Madueke’s output has been sorely missed as the Blues have struggled to find the back of the net in their absence. The club have scored more than two goals in a match on just one occasion since January, a 4-0 win against rock-bottom Southampton.
As such, manager Enzo Maresca has come under pressure from fans, who have quickly tired of his patient, possession-focused style and apparent lack of innovation as results slump. He has not been helped by awkwardly timed injuries, though many a fan has been left wondering what became of Chelsea’s high-flying pre-Christmas form.
That is not to say the grass is any greener at Tottenham, who are languishing in 14th place in the table. Ange Postecoglou’s side also ravaged by injuries with the manager at one stage without 11 first-team players.
Winless in three in the league having lost to Fulham and Manchester City either side of a home draw to Bourneouth, time is running out for Postecoglou to get his side on song. Pressure is mounting as club leadership are reported to be considering a change of head coach.
Date, kick-off time and venue
Chelsea vs Tottenham is scheduled for an 8pm BST kick-off tonight, Thursday, April 3, 2025.
The match will take place at Stamford Bridge.
Where to watch Chelsea vs Tottenham
TV channel: In the UK, the game will be televised live on Sky Sports.
Live stream: Fans can catch the contest live online via the Sky Go app and website.
Live blog: You can follow all the action on matchday via Standard Sport’s live blog, with expert analysis from Dan Kilpatrick and Malik Ouzia at the ground.
Free highlights: The Sky Sports app and YouTube channel will show highlights shortly after the match.
Chelsea vs Tottenham Team News
While several players have returned to training during the international break, Spurs will still be without a handful of key names on Thursday. Postecoglou said on Wednesday that Kevin Danso and Dejan Kulusevski are likely to return “in a couple of weeks,” thus ruling both out of next week’s Europa League semi-final first leg.
Richarlison is also training with the first team and nearing a return after two months out with a calf problem. Lucas Bergvall is eligible for Thursday night’s tie after recovering from illness.
The Chelsea camp will be boosted dramatically by Cole Palmer’s return after he suffered an injury in training shortly before the international break. The young winger has proven influential even amid a dip in goal-scoring form and has been sorely missed. Noni Madueke and Nicolas Jackson are both back in the fold, too.
Maresca confirmed in his pre-match press conference that he is still managing Reece James’ minutes as he looks to protect his injury-prone captain. He added that Romeo Lavia has suffered another setback in his recovery from a persistent hamstring issue which has limited the Belgian to just 12 league appearances since joining Chelsea in 2023.
Chelsea vs Tottenham Prediction
While Chelsea are realistically the more likely candidates for the win on Thursday, one must remember that the Blues do nothing the easy way. See, for instance, the away loss to Servette which nearly saw them miss out on Conference League qualification or last month’s laboured 1-0 win over Leicester. Perhaps low on morale after a string of shaky performances, Chelsea will be vulnerable.
Whether Spurs can take advantage of said weakness, though, is another question entirely. They historically do not perform well at Stamford Bridge, failing to win there since 2018, and are winless – and pointless – in their last three against Chelsea, who will hope to continue the trend.
Head to head (h2h) history and results
Chelsea vs Tottenham Match Odds
Odds via Betfair (subject to change).