Guglielmo Vicario was the only Tottenham player to hold his head high during the 1-0 defeat to Chelsea on Saturday, but he left Jamie Carragher in a state of shock with a decision late in the match.
Joao Pedro struck in the 34th minute to help Chelsea inflict more pain on toothless Tottenham with a dominant 1-0 victory to move up to fourth in the Premier League.
Spurs’ horrendous record in this London derby extended after a meek display under new boss Thomas Frank with only one shot on target all match.
Pedro punished slack home defending to break the deadlock 11 minutes before half-time, but he could have walked off with a hat-trick after fine saves throughout by Vicario to deny the Brazilian attacker. The Italian was forced to make a catalogue of stops, also denying efforts from Pedro Neto and substitute Jamie Gittens.
Chelsea’s victory makes it five in a row against Tottenham and 10 wins from the last 12 meetings in all competitions, with Enzo Maresca’s young team able to bounce back from a disappointing home loss to Sunderland last weekend.
Loud boos greeted full-time as Spurs suffered another home defeat – their third under Frank in seven matches – as fans make their feelings known after another performance which lacked attacking intent in N17. And the biggest uproar came in stoppage time in a moment that baffled Carragher during his commentary for Sky Sports.
Deep into the added minutes the Lilywhites were awarded a free-kick 50 yards from goal, with defenders forward and the chance to launch a last-gasp effort into the box. Vicario instead elected to play it short to Djed Spence, who in turn had no choice but to play it back to his goalkeeper when pressed by a Chelsea attacker, which left Spence fuming and Carragher in a state of shock.
“That just sums Tottenham up,” gasped the Liverpool legend on commentary. “You have been absolutely awful tonight Tottenham. I mean what? Listen to the boos in this stadium and rightly so! How bad is that?”
Where does Vicario rank in Tottenham’s highest earners?
Chelsea really should have added a second shortly after, as Gittens blazed over with the goal at his mercy after a fine pass by Pedro.
Spurs have an immediate chance to win the home fans back when they host Copenhagen on Tuesday before Manchester United travel to north London next Saturday, while Chelsea travel to Qarabağ in Europe before a home clash with Wolves.
