Chelsea 2-2 Tottenham  
by Amar Azam
at Stamford Bridge

A PULSATING second half saw Chelsea and Tottenham share the points as emotions boiled over between managers Thomas Tuchel and Antonio Conte at the end of this thrilling affair. Both men were shown red cards at the final whistle as tempers got the best of them both in this memorable London derby at Stamford Bridge. 

A last-gasp Harry Kane header, six minutes into injury-time, prompted wild celebrations as Tottenham equalised for the second time in a match they rarely looked like taking anything from.  

A goal from Chelsea defender Kalidou Koulibaly, a superb volley from inside the penalty area, had put the home side on the way in a first half in which they dominated their opponents.  

As Conte changed things around in the second half, Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg pulled Tottenham level on 68 minutes. Chelsea responded shortly after, with Reece James putting the home side back in the lead.   

As the second half wore on, Tuchel’s men looked to be on their way to the win before Kane scored late on – although the ball looked to have glanced off James on its way through.   

To their credit, the home side were the better team for much of the game and should have taken all three points against a full of character Tottenham side, who had gone into the match in confident mood.

The tie exploded into life on 19 minutes when Koulibaly, unmarked from a corner-kick, smashed a superb right-footed volley beyond Tottenham’s Hugo Lloris.  

Conte watched on as his side’s hard work in containing Chelsea was undone. The visitors had offered little threat, with Kane looking isolated for much of the first half. However, up until that point, Chelsea’s players had threatened little.  

A highly charged start to the second half saw Tottenham’s players respond positively to Conte’s half-time words. They were back into the match after Hojbjerg pull his side level. The goal prompted the first exchange between the two managers as Tuchel responded angrily to Conte’s celebration.  

The two momentarily squared up, the former clearly aggrieved about an incident in the lead-up to the equalising goal in which referee Anthony Taylor had failed to penalise Rodrigo Bentancur for an earlier challenge on Chelsea’s Kai Havertz.  

James put the home side back in the lead nine minutes later after another defensive lapse from Tottenham’s defenders, prompting a sprint from Tuchel down the touchline. All rather unnecessary – but rather pointed as he had burst past Conte on his way to celebrate with his players.  

However, as the match went into injury time, and with Spurs’ players piling on the pressure, England striker Kane leapt high above his marker to divert the ball beyond goalkeeper Edouard Mendy.  

At the final whistle, as both managers went to shake hands, the two collided once again, prompting ugly scenes between the rival sets of players.