Chelsea 2-0 Tottenham: 5 Talking Points as the Blues cruise to victory | EFL Cup 2021-22
Chelsea beat Tottenham 2-0 in the first leg of the Carabao Cup semi-finals. With the win, the Blues have one foot in the final.
Kai Havertz opened the scoring for the Blues in the fifth minute. The German slotted in from a tight angle after some great work from Marcos Alonso down the left flank.
Chelsea doubled their lead in the 34th minute when Ben Davies scored an own goal. Japhet Tanganga's headed clearance off Hakim Ziyech's free-kick hit Davies' shoulder, and ended up in the back of the net.
Advantage Chelsea! 👌
#CheTot . . https://t.co/3keVUoLDo2
On that note, here's a look at the five talking points from the game:
#5 Romelu Lukaku returns to Chelsea squad
Romelu Lukaku returned to the Chelsea squad after missing the game against Liverpool last weekend. He was left out by Thomas Tuchel for disciplinary reasons after he had called out the German's coaching style, and how it did not favour him, during a controversial interview.
It was not very well received by Tuchel. Lukaku has apologised to the former Paris Saint Germain manager, and also issued a public apology, following which he was recalled to the squad against Tottenham. Lukaku started the game, and was very well received by fans.
Lukaku and the Chelsea fans have still got love for each other 💙 https://t.co/Bus2DKJJpg
#4 Saul Niguez has a game to remember
Saul Niguez dominated the centre of the park, pulling the strings for Chelsea. The former Atletico Madrid star was virtually omnipresent, and arguably had his best game for the Londoners.
He won four of his six tackles, created two chances, won eight duels, made six, and intercepted the ball thrice during a masterclass performance.
Saul Niguez's game by numbers vs. Tottenham:
100% long ball accuracy
89% pass accuracy
69 touches
55 passes
6 tackles (most)
3 interceptions (=most)
2 shots
2 chances created
Dominating in the midfield. 🙌 https://t.co/vuRZD84z38
If he continues playing like this, he could cement a spot for himself in the squad.