Chelsea suffer blow as key attacking player is now unavailable for Tottenham derby

Tottenham Hotspur will face Chelsea in the Premier League and the Blues are without one of their players due to an incident which occurred in the Carabao Cup.

Tottenham Hotspur will return to Premier League action on Saturday with the aim of building on an impressive 3-0 victory against Everton last weekend.

However, Spurs must overcome both their poor home form and poor record against Chelsea in order to secure all three points.

Tottenham are without a number of players due to yet another injury problem at the club, but Chelsea have their own problems with player availability too.

Liam Delap will not be allowed to face Tottenham

Chelsea’s latest problem is not the result of an injury. Rather, it is that Liam Delap has been handed a one-match suspension after being sent off against Wolves in the Carabao Cup.

The striker was only on the pitch at Molineux for 25 minutes before he was booked for an argument and then for a foul. Despite this, Chelsea sealed a 4-3 victory to advance to the next round of the competition.

It was the first time Delap appeared for Chelsea since the end of August, after he suffered a hamstring injury during a 2-0 victory over Fulham

No striker is guaranteed to start for Spurs or Chelsea

Both Joao Pedro and Marc Guiu have failed to thrive in the striker role for Chelsea in Delap’s absence, so it remains to be seen who will lead the line against Spurs.

Tottenham have a similar situation, with Richarlison failing to impress in the Carabao Cup against Newcastle.

It is likely Thomas Frank will choose to start Randal Kolo Muani, but Mathys Tel is another option for the must-win derby.

READ MORE – Three winners and three losers from Tottenham’s Carabao Cup defeat to Newcastle