Premier League game number two awaits this weekend and following Chelsea's opening day win over Everton. Jorginho's penalty separated the sides but the Blues appeared to lack sharpness in their first match back and will be looking to step things up against Tottenham.
Thomas Tuchel admitted as much in his press conference at Goodison Park. He said: "In general, it was maybe not the most exciting Premier League game in the history of the Premier League. Seven minutes of extra time in the first half, and ten minutes in the second half tell the story. There were a lot of interruptions, no team could find a rhythm.
"Everton defended deep in the first half and we struggled with switching the play, we struggled to feel the moments to change speed. It seemed like we did not want to do a decisive mistake so we did not take the risk that is needed in the final 25 metres to open a space up. But in general, it was ok. Second half we did not have enough movement on the ball and that created a lot of ball losses from which we suffered and the game was stuck in between the halves. It wasn't in our half or their half. So in the first away match, you hang in and do what you need to keep a clean sheet and get the win."
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It will be a sterner task at Stamford Bridge when Spurs visit, with Antonio Conte's team coming into the game off the back of a 4-1 victory over Southampton and an impressive summer on and off the pitch. It's little wonder Tuchel suggested he'd like to have more time before entering such a big match.
football.london takes a look at the last week of training as the Blues look to get up to speed to tackle their London rivals.
Gareth Southgate in attendance
If anyone was under the illusion that training wasn't important, the arrival of an international manager would certainly fire up at least a few members of the squad with a World Cup waiting in November. Southgate could be seen in discussion with Tuchel in addition to greeting England internationals Reece James, Mason Mount, Conor Gallagher, Ben Chilwell and was pictured in discussion with new arrival and Three Lions under-19 star, Carney Chukwuemeka.
The likes of Cesar Azpilicueta could also be seen in conversation with the England boss, while Kepa Arrizabalaga ensured to greet Southgate. Raheem Sterling could not spend long engaging with his national team boss however, as he was called away to anti-doping.
Reece James' questionable decision
As temperatures exceeded 30 degrees once again this summer and managers around the country were asked whether the heat factored into their planning for the weekend, one player stood out quite a lot at Cobham. James, despite the soaring temperatures, managed to wear tracksuit bottoms during Friday's session. Unfathomable.
Perhaps he will be better prepared than most when the temperatures rise on Sunday. Tuchel is aware of the impact the weather could have against Spurs
He said: "It's quite demanding. It was quite demanding today in training. There was a huge difference today and yesterday, and it will increase. Tomorrow, we will adapt our training session time to early morning, but in a stadium, it can feel even worse.
"So Sunday at 4.30pm will be quite challenging. I don't know if it's agreed, but hopefully, there will be a pause for drinking. We have some patterns implemented already to cool the body temperature down and improve the situation as much as possible. We have some patterns implemented already to cool the body temperature down to improve the situation as much as possible, but it will be draining."
Two players missing
As referenced in Tuchel's press conference Marcos Alonso and Mateo Kovacic have not been training this week. The Spaniard is still hoping to complete a transfer to Barcelona and missed last week's match against Everton. Sensibly he remains unavailable for the coming weekend.
Kovacic on the other hand is needing to manage a knee injury and as a result, has stepped back from first-team preparations to undergo more recovery work.
Stunning strikes
Amid the usual fun and games in training this week, the Blues have seen seven-a-side matches, shot some hoops on the training pitches and kept the ball in the air before aiming to direct it into bins. N'Golo Kante has looked very active in games in Chelsea's leaked footage and his pace seemed to ensure Marc Cucurella and Kalidou Koulibaly would be tested.
However, some of the impressive strikes on show could not be ignored. Edouard Mendy and Marcus Bettinelli had a difficult period as shots rained down upon them but James, Sterling and Azpilicueta all saw curling efforts head in from the edge of the box, while Ethan Ampadu, with the first team group despite not being awarded a squad number, Kante and Broja scored fine efforts of their own. Ruben Loftus-Cheek may have score the best of all from 20 yards out shaping to curl one to the right but hooking it into the left side of the net with pace.
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