What: Premier League, round 3
Who: Chelsea (1st – 6 points) v Tottenham Hotspur (20th – 0 points)
When: Sunday 31st August 2008 – 13:30 (local time)
Where: Stamford Bridge Stadium, London

Flying Start For Scolari

It has been an ideal start for new Chelsea boss Luiz Felipe Scolari in the Premier League so far. Two games, six points, no goals conceded and now a game against a side that are yet to get off the mark this season, as his team look to an extend a superb run of 84 home league games without defeat.

Things started superbly for Scolari with a 4-0 hammering of Portsmouth in his side’s opening game. Free-flowing football, goals and entertainment galore saw the press lavish praise on the World Cup winner. Last week’s 1-0 away victory over Wigan showed some of the qualities more recognisable with Chelsea teams, but, as has been said time and again, the ability to win ugly when you are not playing well is the key to picking up championships.

There are no noticeable weaknesses in Scolari’s Chelsea side, and new additions such as Deco and Jose Bosingwa add flair to a team now rated by the bookmakers’ as favourites to lift this season’s Premier League title. However, this will be Scolari’s first taste of a London derby and he will need to ensure there is no let up in his side’s performance against a side who can beat anybody on their day, as proved by March’s Carling Cup final victory over the Blues.

The former Brazil coach has done his research though, and will have his side fully prepared for the task in hand. Tottenham, after their poor start, represent a wounded animal – a team who could cause problems if they are given a foothold in the game. An early breakthrough could see Spurs’ wounds opened, but even if patience and a competitive battle is required, the early signs indicate that Chelsea are up to the task.

“It is important for Tottenham not to lose another game. They want their first three points in the league so we have some problems to cope with, we know this,” Scolari said in his pre-match press conference.

“Tottenham have lost both games and made some mistakes. But this is a big chance for Tottenham because it is a derby. We need to respect them even more.”

The respect will be there, but anything other than three more points would represent a disappointing afternoon for the Blues as they look to continue their flying start to the campaign.

Shocking Spurs

Although the Dimitar Berbatov saga has over-shadowed Tottenham’s summer, hopes have still been high that Spurs can have a successful season in manager Juande Ramos’ first full year in charge. Vice-captain Robbie Keane moved to Liverpool but the arrivals of the likes of Luka Modric, David Bentley, Heurelho Gomes and Giovani Dos Santos yet again prompted analysts to suggest that Spurs were the most likely side to challenge the established dominance of the Premier League’s ‘big four’.

However, it has been a shocking start for Spurs. Defeat against Middlesbrough on the opening day could have represented an unfortunate defeat in a tricky away clash, but last week’s home loss to Sunderland again highlighted the lack of a midfield general and seemingly ever-present defensive frailties – with the absence of Berbatov and Keane adding a lack of firepower up-front to Ramos’ list of problems.

Tottenham should be fine however, with a first eleven that can rival most in the Premier League and an array of talented players being led by an astute manager - they are a side capable of beating anybody on a good day. However, their inexperience and evident problems ensure that they are unlikely to launch a consistent enough league run to challenge the top four in the near future and perhaps indicate that the best avenues for immediate success lie in cup competitions.

But the league remains crucial for Tottenham and they will be desperate to get off the mark sooner, rather than later. This game in many ways represents a situation where they have nothing to lose. Nobody expects them to triumph against a powerful Chelsea side and Ramos should take the opportunity to attack, something he has hinted could happen in his pre-match comments.

“I think having a game like Chelsea at this time gives us a great chance to lift the spirits. The game plan should be to go there and play with an ambitious attacking style of football without fear,” he stated.

Spurs are dangerous opponents for Chelsea in this encounter, but even the most ardent of Tottenham fans will admit that anything they gain from Stamford Bridge tomorrow will be a bonus.

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Chelsea – Deco

Deco has made an impressive start to his Chelsea career, earning a man of the match award while scoring in the 4-0 win over Portsmouth on his debut. Last week the Portuguese international enhanced his reputation further with a superb free-kick that proved decisive against Wigan at the JJB Stadium. The ex-Barcelona man will look forward to pulling the strings tomorrow with no real ball-winner to hinder him in the Spurs midfield.

Tottenham – Darren Bent

With Keane gone and Berbatov seemingly going, Darren Bent had his opportunity to announce himself as the man to lead Tottenham this season during the first two league games, following a red-hot pre-season. As yet though, the former Charlton man has failed to take his chance and with Roman Pavlyuchenko now signed for £14 million, the England international is beginning to run out of chances to prove himself to the Spurs faithful. With Juande Ramos considering playing predominantly with a lone-striker this year, Bent has to take his chance soon and this match on the big stage would be the ideal place to start.

FORM GUIDE

Chelsea

August 24 v Wigan (A) WON 1-0
August 17 v Portsmouth (H) WON 4-0

Tottenham

August 23 v Sunderland (H) LOST 2-1
August 16 v Middlesbrough (A) LOST 2-1

TEAM NEWS

Chelsea

Nicolas Anelka will continue to lead the line for Chelsea as Didier Drogba is still out with a knee injury. The Ivorian is reportedly scheduled to return to training in the coming weeks, but is still said to be some time away from regaining full fitness. Key midfielder Michael Essien started against Wigan last week despite nursing a minor injury and is therefore rated as 50/50 for this clash, as is Germany international Michael Ballack.

Tottenham

Dimitar Berbatov will have another crisis meeting with Spurs boss Juande Ramos ahead of the game before a decision is made on the Bulgarian’s involvement. Scotland international full-back Alan Hutton is no closer to a return having suffered a stress fracture in his foot, meaning that Didier Zokora will continue to deputise at right-back. It is as yet unclear if new £14 million signing Roman Pavlyuchenko has been registered in time to play a part.

MATCHDAY SQUADS

Chelsea (from): Cech, Cudicini, Hilario, Ivanovic, Alex, Belletti, Bosingwa, Terry, Carvalho, A Cole, Bridge, Ballack, Essien, J Cole, Mikel, Lampard, Deco, Anelka, Malouda, Kalou.

Tottenham (from): Gomes, Cesar, Zokora, Gunter, Assou-Ekotto, Gilberto, Bale, King, Woodgate, Dawson, Modric, Jenas, Huddlestone, O’Hara, Lennon, Bentley, Dos Santos, Berbatov, Bent.

PREVIOUS STARTING LINE-UPS

Chelsea (1-0 Away V Wigan) (4-5-1/4-3-3): Cech, Bosingwa, Carvalho, Terry, Ashley Cole; Essien, Ballack, Lampard, Deco, Joe Cole, Anelka.

Tottenham (1-2 Home V Sunderland) (4-5-1): Gomes, Zokora, King, Woodgate, Assou-Ekotto; Bentley, Bale, Modric, Lennon, Jenas; Bent.

PREDICTION

It is hard to see Chelsea’s incredible home record being brought to an end by Spurs tomorrow, but Juande Ramos’ side do have nothing to lose. If both sides are true to their pre-match words then there should be goals in this encounter as Chelsea look to build the early season pressure on their title rivals and the visitors attempt to pick up their first points of the season.

I expect to see an improved Tottenham side tomorrow, one that will not go down without a fight and are likely to test Chelsea’s reserves before the international break. However, the Blues are strong in all areas and should be confident of making it three wins out of three for Luiz Felipe Scolari.

Chelsea 2-1 Tottenham

Ref From Chris Myson, Goal.com

Luiz Felipe Scolari’s reign as Chelsea boss started in style with an impressive win against Portsmouth.

Joe Cole slid home Michael Ballack’s pass after 12 minutes and Nicolas Anelka headed in Deco’s cross from close range in the 26th minute.

Frank Lampard added the third from the spot on the stroke of half-time after Sylvain Distin handled.

And Deco crowned a superb Chelsea debut with a swerving shot from 25 yards a minute from the end.

Scolari hopes to bring a more attractive brand of football to Stamford Bridge - and his new charges certainly delivered in their first Premier League game.

But the display should also be placed in the context of a truly wretched performance from Harry Redknapp’s side, who looked a shadow of the unit that had an impressive campaign last season.

Chelsea took only 12 minutes to score the first goal of the Scolari era, and it was perfectly fashioned as Ballack’s pass with the outside of his foot found Joe Cole, who slid a finish beyond James.

Anelka almost added a second when he was denied by James after racing clear - but it was only a temporary reprieve for Portsmouth as the striker was on target after 26 minutes.

Jose Bosingwa’s cross was retrieved by Deco, who was having an outstanding first half, and Anelka headed home with James stranded out of position.

Anelka’s pace was proving too much for Portsmouth, and he shot narrowly wide after racing clear.

Chelsea lost Ballack to injury after 37 minutes, but his replacement Florent Malouda almost had an instant impact with a driven cross that flashed across the face of goal.

Portsmouth had a half-chance when Petr Cech was forced into a block from Niko Kranjcar, the Chelsea keeper recovering to block another effort from Peter Crouch.

Portsmouth were being totally outclassed, and the scoreline was given a more realistic appearance when Chelsea took a three-goal lead in the dying seconds of the opening period.

Distin handled Joe Cole’s cross and Lampard beat James with ease form the spot.

Chelsea continued to press after the break, with both Anelka and Joe Cole only inches away from adding to Portsmouth’s misery.

Little had been seen of Portsmouth’s new strike force of Crouch and Jermain Defoe, but it finally showed glimpses of promise with 13 minutes left.

Crouch headed a long ball into Defoe’s path, but he was stretching and steered his finish wide.

Chelsea deserved a fourth goal, and it was fitting that Deco got it with two minutes to go, firing in from 25 yards via the hands of James, who should have done better.

Owner Roman Abramovich was all smiles at the final whistle as he revelled in the first impressions created by his new manager.

Ref From BBC SPORT By Phil McNulty

Portugal took the advantage in Group A with a 3-1 win over the Czech Republic. An end-to-end game saw them take the lead twice through Deco and Cristiano Ronaldo, but Inter target Ricardo Quaresma confirmed a vital victory and they move three-points clear at the top of the table. They now await the result of Switzerland’s encounter with Turkey knowing a draw would see them become the first side to secure their place in the quarter-finals.

Portugal started this game at the top of Group A on goal difference after both they and the Czech Republic picked up three points in their opening fixture. But while Portugal Coach Felipe Scolari was happy to keep the same starting XI, Karel Bruckner introduced Marek Matejovsky and Milan Baros at the expense of David Jarolim and Jan Koller to try and add more pace and creativity in attack.

A lively start saw both teams pushing forward, with Libor Sionko and Cristiano Ronaldo both having efforts charged down on the edge of the penalty area in quick succession.

It took just eight minutes for Portugal to open the scoring, though. A close one-two between Cristiano Ronaldo and Deco set the former through the Czech defence with Petr Cech charging out of his goal to smother the chance. The ball squirmed loose though and Deco scrambled home, ricocheting through the legs of Marek Jankulovski who was trying to cover the goal line.

The Bohemians tried to hit back straight away as a clever quick free-kick sent Jankulovski into the area on the right, but he sliced his shot wide on his weaker foot under pressure from Paulo Ferreira. Portugal continued to look the most dangerous though, as the Czech Republic’s attack-minded full-backs struggled to deal with their opponents’ quick breaks in wide positions.

The chances continued to come for both sides, with Petit failing to trouble Cech with a tame long-ranger and Baros heading over from a looping Zdenek Grygera cross.

But it was Sionko who found the equaliser for the Czech Republic in the 17th minute after earning a corner himself with some excellent work on the right wing. As Jaroslav Plasil drilled the resulting set-piece towards the penalty spot, the FC Copenhagen winger flicked the ball into the net with a brave diving header.

Jan Polak picked up the first booking of the game after 23 minutes, when he was penalised for a strong sliding challenge on Pepe. Portugal showed their speed on the break by striding straight up the pitch, with Deco fizzing a powerful shot just past the far post following a diagonal run from the left wing. It was clear that Scolari had instructed his players to shoot on sight as Cristiano Ronaldo forced a comfortable save from Cech with a similar effort soon after.

Sionko again came close from a corner, this time from the left-hand side. Ricardo came for the cross but couldn’t reach the ball, but luckily for the Portuguese goalkeeper, Sionko couldn’t find a teammate with his cutback from the back post and Pepe scrambled clear. However, Portugal were clearly having problems defending the Czech set-pieces.

Scolari’s team finished the half strongest and a succession of corners perhaps should have given them back their advantage, but Ricardo Carvalho’s heavy touch wasted his chance after a deflected Deco cross had found its way all the way through to the Chelsea defender at the far post. Almost immediately Cech was called into action to parry a powerful long-range drive from Cristiano Ronaldo.

Cristiano Ronaldo brought the half to the end with a trademark free-kick, but Cech anticipated well to gather the ball at his near post as Greek referee Kyros Vassaras blew his whistle for half-time after a relentless first period.

Paulo Ferreira came out for the second half with a bandage above his left eye after suffering a nasty cut in a clash of heads in the first 45 minutes. He continued to struggle to contain Sionko on the wing, and the Czech player broke into the penalty area but Baros couldn’t get on the end of his slid pass across the six-yard box.

Some quick close passing on the edge of the Czech penalty area saw Nuno Gomes scramble his way free for a shot, but he couldn’t get the ball out of his feet and the tame shot was easy for Cech to catch. The former Fiorentina striker seemed determined after the break and he caught David Rozehnal, who hesitated on the ball at the back, and forced a corner as he attempted to power in high at the near post.

Cech was certainly the busier of the goalkeepers in the opening 15 minutes of the second half, stopping a Simao snapshot with an outstretched leg, before gathering a miss-hit Cristiano Ronaldo volley from the edge of the area.

But Portugal were nearly made to pay for their vulnerability on set-pieces again, as Tomas Ujfalusi flicked on another Plasil corner and Baros came agonisingly close to tapping in at the far post. The Czechs found themselves behind almost immediately in the 63rd minute though, as the referee played the advantage in favour of Portugal and Cristiano Ronaldo drilled Deco’s squared pass home with a low shot that left Cech helpless.

The Czech Republic tried to hit back straight away from a crossed free-kick, but Ferreira blocked Grygera’s acrobatic half-volley at close range after Ricardo had failed to deal with the initial ball into the box.

Bruckner decided to change things around with a substitution as the Bohemians chased their second equaliser of the game. Midfielder Matejovsky made way with Anderlecht striker Stanislav Vlcek coming on to add support for lone-forward Baros, who has looked isolated around the Portuguese penalty area.

The Czech Republic introduced their third striker just five minutes later, when holding midfielder Tomas Galasek made way for Koller as Bruckner rolled the dice and shifted to an attacking 4-3-3 formation. His opposite number Scolari responded immediately by bringing on another centre-back in the form of Fernando Meira to deal with the added aerial threat of Koller, taking the place of midfielder Joao Moutinho.

The substitutions continued, with Portugal skipper Nuno Gomes making way for Hugo Almeida as Cristiano Ronaldo took the captain’s armband and Ricardo Quaresma replaced Simao on the wing.

Sionko came close to hitting another equaliser with seven minutes remaining, but Ricardo was equal to his header from the penalty spot and tipped the ball over the crossbar. Koller nearly got lucky when Ricardo and Pepe came close to getting in each other’s way, but the Sporting goalkeeper judged the bounce well.

Portugal continued to live dangerously, especially with high balls into their penalty area and Ricardo flapped again but Polak was unable to find room for the shot. The Czechs were hit on the counter though as Cristiano Ronaldo was set free behind the opposition’s back line before squaring the ball for substitute Quaresma to tap in and secure a potentially decisive win.
Czech Republic: Cech; Grygera, Ujfalusi, Rozehnal, Jankulovski; Polak; Matejovsky (Vlcek 68), Galasek (Koller 73), Sionko, Baros; Plasil (Jarolim 85)

Portugal: Ricardo; Bosingwa, Pepe, Carvalho, Paulo Ferreira; Petit, Moutinho (Fernando Meira 75); Cristiano Ronaldo, Deco, Simao (Quaresma 80); Nuno Gomes (Hugo Almeida 79)

Ref: Vassaras (Gre)

Ref From channel4.com