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A farce that sums up a lot of modern football, or one of the games of the season? It maybe sums up how confusing and contradictory this game was that it could genuinely be both. Chelsea\u2019s eventual 4-1 victory at Tottenham Hotspur could have huge effects for both of their seasons too. Mauricio Pochettino\u2019s side have got the win it feels like they have been waiting for, and that at the stadium that still means more to him than any other in football. Ange Postecoglou\u2019s scarcely believable high line with nine men and no main centre-halves did make it border-line for some time. Such a creditable approach earned the applause of the home crowd when it finally went wrong for Nicolas Jackson\u2019s decisive second goal, but there was that unsettling feeling of momentum being undone. Spurs have not just lost their first league game under Postecoglou but also Destiny Udogie and Sergio Romero to suspensions and possibly James Maddison and Micky van de Ven to injury.<\/p>\n
That all has the feeling of bringing down a flight that had been improbably soaring for some time.<\/p>\n
Postecoglou could of course tell his players it was a freak game. That\u2019s one way of putting it. It was almost several different events in one, as we saw a spell akin to the infamous Battle of the Bridge as well as Saturday\u2019s Copa Libertadores final, a grand staging for every debate about VAR over and over and then what amounted to a bizarre but brave training session, where Postecoglou seemingly set up the irrepressible Guglielmo Vicario against the entirety of Chelsea\u2019s young attack.<\/p>\n
To top it off, and turn everything on its head, the previously misfiring Jackson got a hat-trick late on.<\/p>\n
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Tottenham 1-4 Chelsea: Nicolas Jackson\u2019s hat-trick ensured Mauricio Pochettino\u2019s men secured the points after a ridiculous encounter with Spurs<\/p>\n
Tottenham manager, Ange Postecoglou, says he \u2018does not like\u2019 the amount of time it takes for VAR to come to their decisions in the Premier League as his team\u2019s clash with Chelsea was disrupted several times over contentious issues.<\/p>\n
Chelsea eventually triumphed 4-1 in the contest in north London as Spurs were shown two red cards, the first coming after a review by the video referee in which Cristian Romero was dismissed.<\/p>\n
There were also three goals disallowed in the game and multiple checks for serious foul play which accumulated to 21 minutes of added time across both halves.<\/p>\n
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Lengthy VAR calls broke up play as Tottenham suffered their first Premier League loss of the season <\/p>\n
Chelsea boss Mauricio Pochettino, speaking to BBC Sport: \u201cThis is football. We won and deserved it. The technology is there and we need to accept. Many things happen on the pitch and you need to verify and check.<\/p>\n
\u201cLook at the game between Tottenham and Liverpool here, Tottenham won in the last minute. I think we deserve the credit. Tottenham are doing fantastic but tonight I think we were the better team.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is amazing for him and really important to build confidence.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think 4-1 in the end we deserved the victory and the three points and it is really important because we have a really important game next with Manchester City.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is clear from the beginning we didn\u2019t have the whole squad. This momentum we need to build and on Sunday we have another opportunity to show we are in a good way.\u201d<\/p>\n
Chelsea hat-trick hero Nicolas Jackson speaking to Sky Sports: \u201cI am very happy and it has been a difficult time for everybody in the team. We are coming back really slowly and happy to have scored three goals. It\u2019s my first hat-trick, so I am happy to have done it with the biggest club in England and everywhere.<\/p>\n
\u201cI need to always improve and work harder. We continue working. Tottenham have an amazing stadium and amazing fans, so we needed to fight and win the game.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was really difficult as they continued to maintain their line [when down to 9-men]. We have quality players to give us the ball and we won. We were dreaming about winning the big games and the confidence within the team is coming really slowly.\u201d<\/p>\n
Tottenham boss Ange Postecoglou, speaking to BBC Sport: \u201cThere was a fair bit going on, a lot of VAR intervention, a hard game for me to analyse but I am very proud of the players. Right to the end they were trying to create something for us.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe players couldn\u2019t give any more than they did, part of this game is will, effort and determination and they showed that.\u201d<\/p>\n
On VAR decisions and time taken to make them: \u201cI don\u2019t like it, it is the way the game is going. Some of it is self inflicted because if we come out every week complaining about decision that is what will happen, every decision gets forensically checked and we will be sitting around for a long time in every game trying to figure out what is going on.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t like it but I am probably in the wilderness with that because I keep getting told that\u2019s where we want to go. I am too old school, I\u2019ll respect the referee\u2019s decision right or wrong. But it is the way the game is going.<\/p>\n
On Maddison injury: \u201cHe got a knock on the ankle, we were down one man already. It made sense to make a couple of changes at that point.\u201d<\/p>\n
More from Ange Postecoglou on VAR decisions: \u201cThere will be a forensic study of every decision out there, I think that is the way the game is going and I don\u2019t like it. If you look at all that standing around we did today, maybe people enjoy that sort of thing but I\u2019d rather see us playing football.\u201d<\/p>\n
On Tottenham sending offs: \u201cYou have to accept the referee\u2019s decision, that is how I grew up. This constant erosion of the referee\u2019s authority is where the game is going to get – they are not going to have any authority. We are going to be under the control of someone with a tv screen a few miles away.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe decision is the decision. In 26 years I have had plenty of bad decisions, I have had plenty fall in my favour. It is what it is.\u201d<\/p>\n
On playing with a high line down to nine men: \u201cIt is just who we are mate, it is who we are and who we will be for as long as I am here. If we go down to five men we will have a go.\u201d<\/p>\n
Tottenham boss Ange Postecoglou speaking to Sky Sports:<\/strong> \u201cIt is pretty hard to process. It is almost impossible to analyse the game because it just seemed to get out of control for large parts of it. Disappointed by the result but really proud of the players, they gave everything and that is the positive we will take.<\/p>\n \u201cWe were very close to getting an equaliser a couple of times and it shows their spirit. It was just a bridge too far today.<\/p>\n \u201cI thought we started really well, scored a great goal and inches away from another. The red card affected the game, I felt like I was standing around waiting for things to happen, with VAR intervention. It felt like a lot of standing around.\u201d<\/p>\n 90+9 mins: This is the end. The score is heavily in favour of Chelsea but Tottenham\u2019s persistance to play their way made this encounter extremely entertaining. <\/p>\n Ange Postecoglou suffers his first defeat as Spurs boss but he\u2019ll be proud of the players who dug deep until the end. Nicolas Jackson\u2019s late goals put a dampener on things but the bottom line is that Mauricio Pochettino\u2019s return to north London is a successful one. <\/p>\n 90+8 mins: Four! It\u2019s a very similar goal to the previous two but this time Jackson is the one sent in behind the high line. He carries the ball into the box, goes around the goalkeeper and slots it home. <\/p>\n 90+4 mins: That\u2019s that. <\/p>\n Tottenham\u2019s high line does for them as Conor Gallagher gets in behind again. He brings the ball into the box from the right and slots it back to Nicolas Jackson who belts it home. <\/p>\nFull-time! Tottenham 1-4 Chelsea <\/h3>\n
GOAL! Tottenham 1-4 Chelsea (Jackson, 90+8\u2019)\u26bd\ufe0f<\/h3>\n
GOAL! Tottenham 1-3 Chelsea (Jackson, 90+4\u2019)\u26bd\ufe0f<\/h3>\n