By David Awopetu
Jorginho’s first-half penalty saw Chelsea deservedly beat Tottenham 1-0 as Thomas Tuchel won his first game on the road in charge of the Blues.
The Italy playmaker converted from the spot after 24 minutes following a foul by Eric Dier, who needlessly brought down Timo Werner in the decisive moment of the match.
Jose Mourinho’s side barely threatened thereafter in what was a lacklustre display from the hosts, who have now lost their last three games in a row, including their previous two at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium for the first time at their new ground.
As a result, Chelsea have jumped up to sixth in the Premier League, while Spurs stay eighth in the table.
Chelsea showed brilliant intent from the very first whistle, dictating the tempo of the game and dominating the ball, playing with a great deal of fluidity. The Blues also can take pride in a third straight clean sheet kept under Tuchel, with Tottenham exerting considerable pressure in the closing stages as they searched for an equaliser.
Spurs were disappointing in the first half, and came out brighter after the break, although they still struggled to create too many opportunities, with Edouard Mendy not being forced into a comfortable save from Erik Lamela’s effort from distance until the 78th minute.
Meanwhile, at the other end, Chelsea continued to pose a threat, with Hugo Lloris being forced into a couple of vital interventions, firstly diving in front of Christian Pulisic to punch away a Mason Mount cross while he also got down low to keep out an effort from the England international as Chelsea looked to extend their lead.
Spurs – who are without talismanic forward Harry Kane through injury – continued to look limp in attack, though their best chance would come with just three minutes to play. Serge Aurier – restored to the starting XI – whipped in a delicious ball from the right, only for Carlos Vinicius to put his header wide.
Speaking afterwards, Blues boss Tuchel was delighted with his side’s overall performance – the former PSG boss having seen his side keep three consecutive clean sheets under his management – though urged them to have more of a killer instinct at the top end of the pitch.
The result sees Chelsea move up to sixth, three points ahead of Spurs and just four points behind fourth-placed Liverpool.
