Tottenham 3-4 Chelsea: Player ratings as Spurs suffer second-half implosion

• Tottenham took an early 2-0 lead
• Jadon Sancho halved the deficit before the break
• Two Cole Palmer penalties either side of Enzo Fernandez’s volley won the game for Chelsea

Tottenham squandered another two-goal lead as they slumped to a 4-3 defeat at home to fierce London rivals Chelsea on Sunday afternoon.

When Spurs hosted Chelsea in this fixture last season, it produced the game of the season. The pair did their best to top that bonkers contest during a dizzying display.

Marc Cucurella’s footwear stole the spotlight in the opening 11 minutes. The free-wheeling left-back twice lost his footing, gifting possession to a home side feverishly pressing from the front. Dominic Solanke fired Spurs in front after the first giveaway and Dejan Kulusevski doubled that advantage following another turnover.

The Tottenham crowd were only partially celebrating their 2-0 lead, halting the cheers to jeer Cucurella as he trundled across to the touchline to swap boots at the break in play.

In a breathless contest, Jadon Sancho halved the deficit for Chelsea with barely 15 minutes on the clock. The former Manchester United forward jinked in off the left flank and fizzed a crisp shot beyond Fraser Forster’s dive, clipping the inside of the post on its way into the net.

Cole Palmer completed the comeback shortly after the hour mark, nervelessly dispatching a spot-kick won by the energetic Moises Caicedo. Chelsea’s talismanic playmaker was at the heart of the move that nudged the visitors in front after 73 minutes, wriggling between a crowd of white shirts before his deflected shot sat up for Enzo Fernandez to lash into the bottom corner from the top of the box.

Ever the showman, Palmer ended this manic display with a Panenka penalty, demonstrating a layer of composure entirely out of keeping with a wild game to dink Chelsea into a 4-2 lead in the 84th minute.

James Maddison emerged off the bench to tee up his skipper Son Heung-min in the sixth minute of stoppage time, yet that strike only proved to be a not so consilatory consolation.

Enzo Maresca hauled off Romeo Lavia at the break, bringing on Malo Gusto as a natural right-back which shifted Moises Caicedo into his natural midfield role. The Ecuador international was fortunate to escape a red card for a brutal first-half lunge, but found himself on the other side of an ill-judged challenge after the break.

Taking advantage of his new positioning, Caicedo burst into Tottenham’s box, luring Yves Bissouma into a mistimed sliding tackle to win an equalising penalty for Chelsea. The Blues exerted far more control with the punchy 23-year-old in the middle of the pitch, enjoying lashings of possession while limiting Tottenham to a smattering of shots.

Tottenham player ratings (4-3-3)

Subs not used: Brandon Austin (GK), Djed Spence, Sergio Reguilon, Will Lankshear

Chelsea player ratings (4-2-3-1)

Enzo Fernandez got on the scoresheet for Chelsea / Shaun Botterill/GettyImages

Subs not used: Filip Jorgensen (GK), Axel Disasi, Tosin Adarabioyo, Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall

Player of the match – Cole Palmer (Chelsea)

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