Ex-Spurs Scout previews Tottenham v Chelsea, slams Gallagher and names Blues danger man
Tottenham News is delighted to welcome aboard our brilliant new columnist Bryan King, the former goalkeeper who spent six years as a senior scout at Spurs and 28 years in total in first-team scouting roles. Bryan also spent eight years on Everton’s recruitment team and 11 years scouting at Aston Villa across two different spells.
Tottenham will welcome former manager Mauricio Pochettino back to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium when they host Chelsea in the Premier League on Monday 6 November.
Following Arsenal’s loss to Newcastle at St James’ Park on Saturday 4 November, Ange Postecoglou’s Spurs are the only team left in the Premier League yet to taste defeat this season.
A win against their London rivals would see them return to the top of England’s top flight and move five points clear of their north London rivals, and two points clear of last season’s champions, Manchester City.
In order to do that, they will need to beat a fired-up Chelsea led by their former beloved boss, and ex-Spurs scout Bryan King has been speaking to Tottenham News about the importance of the clash.
“There is a lot riding on this game, a bit of rivalry all over the place, in name, in former managers, and it is always a tough game when Tottenham and Chelsea play, whether it is at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium or at Stamford Bridge.
“Chelsea have a few problems at the moment, that is for sure. When you look through their squad they have overpaid for a number of players and against Brentford last time out in the league, they looked extremely ordinary. Defensively, they looked all over the place at times and Brentford never looked like losing that game.
“Chelsea will need to up their game on Monday night, and if they don’t, they will certainly get beat again. It will be interesting to see if Pochettino makes any changes from the Brentford game.
“Having said all of that, Tottenham will still need to be wary. Players like Raheem Sterling can cause problems, and although Moises Caicedo hasn’t looked like a danger at Chelsea yet, he was a danger at Brighton and things can change. Nicolas Jackson has been getting a lot of criticism and I am not the biggest fan of Conor Gallagher, but these players could certainly prove their critics wrong.
“Chelsea are a wounded club at the moment, things haven’t been gelling, but this is a big chance for them to put their name back in contention if they can get a result, and Spurs will be under pressure as they are the only team who haven’t been beaten yet.
“I don’t want to hear people saying after the game that Chelsea bossed Spurs off the park. They always seem to be more up for it and more powerful in their tackle when the two teams play, but I think in this game, Spurs can show them what it is like to come to Tottenham and have a really tough game, I think the players will be up for it.
“Overall I think the Tottenham players will be able to handle the occasion. It is a big game, it is a London derby and if you are a footballer that is all you should need.”
Ex-Spurs scout prediction – 3-1
In other Tottenham news, one key first-team player is currently a “50/50” for the clash with Chelsea on Monday night.