Preview: Tottenham Hotspur v Chelsea

TEAM NEWS

Chelsea have Pedro back from suspension as they bid for a record 14 consecutive wins in a single top-flight season.

Nemanja Matic was rested for the win over Stoke and could earn a recall.

Tottenham defenders Kyle Walker and Jan Vertonghen could return to the starting line-up after they missed the win over Watford through suspension.

Erik Lamela remains out with a hip problem but Mousa Dembele, who was rested against Watford, is expected to return in midfield.

5 LIVE COMMENTATOR’S NOTES

John Murray: “Talk about rarity value. We might witness something here that no team has been able to achieve in any one top-flight season since this league was first played in 1888.

“And if they manage it, Chelsea will become only the fifth team to win 14 consecutive league matches at any time, in any of the divisions.

“Tottenham are already one of the victims of this Chelsea winning streak, having lost at Stamford Bridge in November. But they’ll have other ideas this time round, and with good reason too, after running into a rich vein of form of their own with four successive wins.”

Twitter: @bbcjohnmurray

WHAT THE MANAGERS SAY

Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettino: “Chelsea arrive in very good shape – us too after the last few games.

“It will be a very tough game and a great opportunity for us to try to stop them and try to reduce the gap.

“It’s important, I think it’s important for us and for the Premier League to try to win and try to stop them and reduce the gap.”

Chelsea head coach Antonio Conte: “Now it’s not easy after 13 wins in a row you face teams that want to beat you not only to take three points, but for many reasons.

“It’s more difficult. We must know this.

“I think it’s very difficult to repeat this run. To win 16 games, draw one game and lose two games is a great achievement for us.”

LAWRO’S PREDICTION

Tottenham were impressive at Watford and they seem to have found a momentum now with Harry Kane and Dele Alli finding form.

I have a feeling they will halt the Chelsea surge which has been so impressive. To win 13 games in a row is just fantastic but Chelsea have some hard fixtures on the horizon.

Prediction: 2-1

MATCH FACTS

Head-to-head

• Tottenham have won only four of their 49 league matches against Chelsea (D19, L26), with all four of those victories coming at White Hart Lane.
• Chelsea have won only one of their last 10 Premier League matches at White Hart Lane (D5, L4) – the 4-2 victory on 20 October 2012.
• The Blues could do the league double against Spurs for the first time since 2005-06.

Tottenham

• Tottenham could remain unbeaten in their opening 10 home matches of a Premier League season for the second time. The other occasion was in 2000-01 (when they won 13).
• They have won four league games in a row, scoring 13 goals in the process and conceding just three.
• Harry Kane has scored 17 goals in his last 17 Premier League London derbies, including 10 in his last nine played at White Hart Lane.
• This will be Mauricio Pochettino’s 150th Premier League as a manager/head coach.

Chelsea

• A victory for Chelsea would make them the first team to win 14 consecutive top-flight matches within the same season. They would equal Arsenal’s English top-flight record of 14 successive wins between February-August 2002 (over two seasons).
• Only once before in the Premier League has a side won more points than Chelsea’s 49 after 19 games – that was also Chelsea in 2005-06 (52).
• The Blues have won six successive Premier League away games, conceding just one goal.
• Diego Costa has scored in seven of his nine away league appearances this season, only failing to find the net at Arsenal and Sunderland.

SAM (Sports Analytics Machine) is a super-computer created by @ProfIanMcHale at the University of Salford that is used to predict the outcome of football matches.

Source: BBC