Back to news
Enzo Fernandez grabs winner as Chelsea beats Tottenham to climb to 4th in Premier League - AP News
@Source: apnews.com
Enzo Fernandez sent Chelsea back into the Champions League qualification positions with a second-half header that secured a 1-0 win over Tottenham in a typically feisty Premier League derby between the London rivals on Thursday.
The Argentina midfielder got in between defenders to nod home Cole Palmer’s cross in the 50th minute at Stamford Bridge.
Chelsea climbed above Newcastle and Manchester City into fourth place in the Premier League, which should have five spots in next season’s Champions League. There are eight rounds left in the league.
This fixture has been wild and chaotic in recent years and while the latest edition was hardly a classic, there were 10 yellow cards and a melee to go with two goals disallowed after video review — one for each side.
Moises Caicedo thought he had put Chelsea 2-0 ahead in the 56th when he volleyed home sweetly after a free kick was only partially cleared, but the goal was ruled out for offside against Levi Colwill in the buildup after long VAR check that frustrated fans.
Tottenham substitute Pape Sarr then had a long-range strike scrubbed off because he fouled Caicedo before surging forward to take his shot. In the end, Sarr lost his goal and was booked for his challenge.
Tottenham captain Son Heung-min had a chance saved by Robert Sanchez before 12 minutes of stoppage time.
“If we want to become an important team, we need to win in a dirty way, ugly way,” Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca said, “and (I’m) quite happy.”
Tottenham stayed in 14th place, with its priority now clearly the Europa League after reaching the quarterfinals. This was another below-par league performance that will pile the pressure on its under-fire manager, Ange Postecoglou, who was unhappy at Sarr’s goal being disallowed and faced some criticism from fans for his substitutions during the second half.
“My subs have been booed, it’s not the first time,” Postecoglou said. “They are allowed to boo.”
The match saw the return from injury of Chelsea striker Nicolas Jackson after two months out.
Steve Douglas is at https://twitter.com/sdouglas80
AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
Related News
20 Mar, 2025
Championship club send 4,000 away ticket . . .
24 Mar, 2025
WATCH: Ronaldo misses poor penalty to ke . . .
10 Mar, 2025
The plane crash in a Welsh village that . . .
14 Mar, 2025
World News | EAM Jaishankar Thanks Austr . . .
19 Mar, 2025
India News | CIMA Art Mela to Showcase W . . .
11 Feb, 2025
Tovosia hails contestants
26 Mar, 2025
Top home hardware firm data leak could s . . .
16 Mar, 2025
Liverpool vs Newcastle - Carabao Cup fin . . .