Chelsea host Tottenham on 24 October 2026, sitting fourth with 13 points from seven games while Spurs are stuck in 16th on six and only got their first league win of the season last week. Alonso and De Zerbi haven't faced each other enough to draw meaningful patterns from the managerial head to head, so Chelsea's squad depth and home advantage are effectively doing the tactical analysis.
Chelsea arrive in good nick, having won 2-0 at Everton and thrashed Bournemouth 5-1 and they're unbeaten in six home league games this season with five wins and a draw. Tottenham stumbled through their opening weeks before finally winning their first Premier League game of the campaign, 3-1 against Coventry City on 19 October.
Chelsea are without Emiliano Martínez (fractured jaw), Reece James (long term knee) and Jamie Gittens (ankle). Tottenham's list is longer and considerably more damaging: Sávio, Lucas Bergvall, Xavi Simons, Wilson Odobert and Mykhailo Mudryk are all out injured, Rodrigo Bentancur is suspended after his red card and Destiny Udogie is a doubt, stripping De Zerbi of most of his creative and defensive depth at once.
Alonso has built Chelsea around possession and the clean sheet at Everton is the clearest recent sign of a side starting to hold its defensive shape as well as it attacks. De Zerbi's Tottenham have been too easy to cut through this season and with so many wide attackers unavailable, their options when they lose the ball are far fewer than they would want. Bentancur's suspension and the doubt over Udogie compound the problem at set pieces, leaving Tottenham short in defensive areas that were already a concern. The most telling mismatch in open play is Palmer operating against a Tottenham midfield without Sávio, Xavi Simons, Odobert and Mudryk. João Pedro faces a backline without Bentancur and potentially without Udogie. The Caicedo and Maddison duel is the most interesting individual battle: if Maddison can drop between the lines and get Tottenham playing forward, De Zerbi's side have a route into the game but whether Caicedo can track him while Tonali breaks into space is the question that shapes the game's middle third.
Chelsea have won 83 of roughly 181 meetings between the sides to Tottenham's 55 or 56 and at Stamford Bridge they've won six of the last eight home league encounters.
Chelsea 2-0 Tottenham. The home form is strong, the squad depth is real and Spurs are arriving in a state of genuine disruption. Two goals and another clean sheet is the most likely outcome.
Ryan Baldi
Football Writer
Ryan Baldi is a professional football writer with years of experience and has been featured by respected outlets such as the BBC, The Guardian, Sky Sports, DAZN, FourFourTwo, ESPN, Yahoo Sport and Football365. He has also written several books including Arsène Who?.
