Chelsea

Nicolas Jackson is back to lead the line up front after missing the trip to Arsenal before the international break, as is Cole Palmer behind him. That is likely to see Pedro Neto moving back to his more familiar role on the wing, with Jadon Sancho on the other flank.

Christopher Nkunku makes way for those changes, as does Reece James, with Enzo Fernandez set to line up alongside Moises Caicedo in midfield, the Argentinian captaining the Blues tonight.

Robert Sanchez continues in goal, but there are two more changes ahead of him in our defence. Malo Gusto and Trevoh Chalobah come in for Wesley Fofana and Benoit Badiashile, while Levi Colwill and Marc Cucurella retain their places.

Noni Madueke also returns from his absence, taking a place among our substitutes on Thursday evening.

Tottenham have made five changes to their team, following a 2-0 loss to Fulham last time out. Micky Van de Ven, Lucas Bergvall, James Maddison, Wilson Odobert and Son Heung-Min all come in for Spurs, as Ben Davies, Yves Bissouma, Archie Gray, Brennan Johnson and Mathys Tel dropping out.

Chelsea: Sanchez, Gusto, Chalobah, Colwill, Cucurella, Caicedo, Fernandez (c), Neto, Palmer, Sancho, Jackson

Chelsea substitutes: Jorgensen, Acheampong, Badiashile, Tosin, James, Dewsbury-Hall, George, Madueke, Nkunku

Tottenham: Vicario, Spence, Romero, Van de Ven, Udogie, Bergvall, Bentancur, Maddison, Odobert, Solanke, Son (c)

Tottenham substitutes: Kinsky, Davies, Porro, Bissouma, Gray, Sarr, Moore, Johnson, Tel

The referee is Craig Pawson.

After a 17-day break, Enzo Maresca’s team are about to enter a busy phase, starting with successive derby clashes tonight against Tottenham and on Sunday at Brentford.

Last time out, a depleted Blues side were edged 1-0 in another all-London affair at Arsenal. Spurs slipped to 14th with a 2-0 loss down the road at Fulham and they trail the fourth-placed Blues by 15 points with nine league games remaining.

Both of tonight’s teams still have their eye on European glory, with quarter-final legs over the next two Thursdays. In fact, the London pair’s progress forced UEFA to reverse the order of Chelsea’s Conference League fixtures against Legia Warsaw.

With European qualification on the domestic front seemingly unlikely for Spurs, the Europa League and the prize of Champions League entry will surely dominate Ange Postecoglu’s thoughts, but not before tonight’s capital grudge match has run its course.

Meanwhile, the Blues have the chance to secure a fourth victory in a row against Tottenham home and away, continuing our best run against them since 2002.

Team news

Having missed several players for the narrow 1-0 loss away at Arsenal in our last match due to injury, Maresca had stated that he hoped some of them would be available again when we returned from the international break.

In his pre-match press conference on Thursday, our head coach confirmed that is indeed the case for attacking trio Cole Palmer, Noni Madueke and Nicolas Jackson.

‘Cole is back, he is okay. He is better, Noni is better and Nico is better. They are all good,’ Maresca confirmed to the media at Cobham.

Asked whether Palmer, Jackson and Madueke were fit to start the game in a later interview, Maresca replied ‘yes’, before commenting on their prospects of playing the full 90 minutes.

‘Probably Nico and Noni, no, because they come back after two months, and Cole is just in case he has to play 90 minutes.’

The history

Chelsea have recorded 67 league victories against Tottenham (and Newcastle United), making them our favourite opponents.

The first instance of this London derby came in December 1909 at the Bridge, following Spurs’ promotion to the top flight. The Pensioners prevailed 2-1, Jimmy Windridge opening the scoring with a header before Joe Bradshaw netted with 15 minutes to go. Billy Minter replied at the death for the visitors.

The Blues were unbeaten against our London rivals home and away in a run of 32 league matches between 1990 and 2006, and still dominated the home fixture after a loss at the Lane.

Most famously, title-chasing Spurs received a Premier League record nine yellow cards (plus a violent conduct ban for Mousa Dembele) during the ‘Battle of the Bridge’ in 2016. Chelsea came from 2-0 down to draw 2-2 through Gary Cahill and a wonder goal from Eden Hazard, handing Leicester City the league crown.

In fact, the north Londoners’ only league win in 39 visits to the Bridge since February 1990 came in April 2018. Alvaro Morata struck first but Christian Eriksen and a Dele Alli brace completed an unexpected comeback.

Chelsea have won four of the six meetings in west London since then, and each of the past three. Late last season, Trevoh Chalobah and Nicolas Jackson sealed a 2-0 win for a very young Blues side, during which Josh Acheampong made his debut.

Know this...

Chelsea have won each of our past four league games at Stamford Bridge, the last two with a clean sheet.

The Blues are targeting a fifth league ‘double’ this evening, adding to the ones already achieved against West Ham United, Wolverhampton Wanderers, Leicester and Southampton.

Of the 23 Premier League goals Jackson has scored for the Blues, 11 have come in London derbies (four of them against Tottenham).

Most Premier League goals against a single opponent

Arsenal vs Everton - 124

Chelsea vs Tottenham Hotspur - 120

Liverpool vs Newcastle United - 120

Manchester United vs Everton - 120

Arsenal (31) and Liverpool (35) are the only clubs to have racked up more home points than Chelsea (28) this season.

Only relegation-haunted Leicester (10) and Southampton (12) have lost more times on the road than Tottenham (eight), which is Spurs' worst return since 2008/09.

Caicedo has played in three league wins over our North London rivals since joining Chelsea at the beginning of last season and describes the “phenomenal feeling” he has got from those games in a programme exclusive.

'Always there is fire because every player wants to fight for the badge and to win the game as well,' he says. 'You need to control yourself because the fans support us a lot and they want us to fight for every ball, but we always go with the mentality to win every tackle, every duel – that’s it.

'I think the last game, away, was a good one because we were losing 2-0 but the team came back and it was a good performance from the boys. The Chelsea fans were crazy in that game and they supported us a lot, and that’s why I think we felt we could come back and win the game.'

In a wide-ranging interview, the Ecuadorian also turns his attention to the run-in, identifying a steely determination in the dressing room to finish this season strongly, both in the league and European competition.

'This is a very big club and it deserves a lot,' he says. 'The team is working hard until the end of the season because we know we have something to fight for and we are concentrated on doing our best every single day. We are looking forward to it.'

Elsewhere in the programme, Blues legend Hasselbaink talks about his impressive scoring record against Spurs, who he met 11 times in Chelsea colours, scoring 12 goals.

'The atmosphere changed significantly when you played Spurs, and that goes over to the players,' he explains. 'It was just the case that I always did really well against Spurs.

'That stat is crazy because, in the four years I was there, we would have played them eight times in the league and I remember I scored against them almost every game, and one of them was a hat-trick, and then in the cup I must also have scored a couple of times. So, yeah, there were not many times when I didn’t score against them!

'The league game when I scored my perfect hat-trick... I think that was a very iconic moment because that doesn’t really happen that often – I think Cole Palmer did it last year as well.

'I didn’t even know I’d done it until after the match someone told me and I thought, "Oh yeah… okay!" Then you start thinking about it and it was a very good night, a good match.'

There’s also coverage of the Chelsea Legends’ recent game against their Liverpool counterparts at Anfield, and all the info you need ahead of the big game, alongside the latest from around the club.

Maresca Press Conference 🎙️ | Video | Official Site  Chelsea

Chelsea v Tottenham Hotspur | Match | Official Site  Chelsea

The international break followed by a weekend dedicated to FA Cup action means it will have been over two-and-a-half weeks since Maresca’s Blues took to the field. Once again, it is north London opponents standing between us and three vital Premier League points.

Maresca is under no illusions as to how significant a game it is. That is not simply because of the history of the fixture but when it arrives in the season, and what ramifications it could have for the closing weeks of the campaign.

‘It’s a huge game, it’s big,’ Maresca stated.

‘We know how important it is for the fans and the club, but it’s also important for us to finish where we are now [in the Champions League qualification places]. It would be a huge achievement in this moment for us.

‘From a win you can build momentum until the end of the season, but from now on every game is important and they all mean three points. So we have to win as many as we can and then we will see where we can finish.

‘If you are able to finish top four, top five, first of all it is fantastic for the fans, and for the club, because we can bring this club where it has always been,’ added our head coach.

‘But for the players it's also important because they can realise the work that they have done and have something for the future.’

Focusing on tomorrow’s game, Maresca acknowledged Tottenham have also suffered with injuries this season, which he says might explain their position in the table. They are expected to have a nearly fully-fit squad for the trip across the capital, and Maresca is anticipating another tough encounter in SW6.

‘Spurs have many important and good players,' he continued. 'First of all it’s a derby, so it will be tough, and it’s a Premier League game and you can struggle in any Premier League game because they are all difficult.

‘Since day one, our players are giving everything. The attitude and behaviour has always been top, every game and every day. Now we have nine games to go, and hopefully we can finish where we are [in the Champions League places].’

The visit of Tottenham Hotspur to Stamford Bridge on Thursday is top of the Blues' agenda – and it will be our first game since March 16 due to the international break and the scheduling of the FA Cup quarter-finals.

Those players not representing their countries were given some time off by head coach Enzo Maresca, but work was also undertaken at Cobham before the entire squad reconvened.

'Overall, it was a good international break,' Maresca explained. 'We had players with their international teams, we had players here who could rest, and we could also focus on some specific work. So overall, it was a good one.’

Our clash with Spurs begins the Premier League run-in. We have nine league games remaining and are currently fourth in the top-flight table. And Maresca insists his squad will do everything in their power to secure a place in the Champions League.

He said: 'We are there [in the top four] – and we have been there all season – so it’s our duty to try to finish there.

'And as I’ve said, this club belongs in the Champions League. So, we have to do everything in our hands possible to bring the club there.’

Both of the players who scored in last season’s corresponding fixture against Tottenham at the Bridge – Trevoh Chalobah and Nicolas Jackson – were involved in training on Tuesday, as was young defender Josh Acheampong, who made his senior debut as a substitute in that 2-0 home win for the Blues.

That result and our 4-2 victory in north London in December have helped the Blues record four successive wins over Tottenham. Yet Maresca is aware of the threat posed by Ange Postecoglou's side and will not be relying on history to help us to three points.

He said: ‘I think the next game will be a different one compared to the previous game, because every game is different.

'In the first game, we didn’t start in the perfect way as we conceded two goals, but the team was always there in the game and in the end we won.

'I think this one will be different, it’s a derby so will be difficult, but we have nine games to go and we need to win as many as we can.’

More than two weeks have passed since Enzo Maresca's side was last in action – the international break and FA Cup schedule the reasons why – but our Premier League campaign resumes this Thursday as Spurs make the trip across the capital.

The game is always a highlight in the calendars of supporters – and our first meeting with Ange Postecoglou's side this season saw the Blues battle back from two goals behind to record a memorable 4-2 victory at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

Those players not away representing their countries have continued to work under the watchful eye of Maresca and his staff during the international break, but training numbers at Cobham were back to full strength as a session was undertaken in the Surrey sunshine.

Among those involved in training today were Enzo Fernandez, who scored and assisted against Brazil for Argentina last week, and Blues skipper Reece James, who netted a superb free-kick for England during their 3-0 World Cup qualifying win over Latvia.