Chelsea will take a 2-1 lead to White Hart Lane for the second leg of the Worthington Cup semi-final in a fortnight's time after victory over Tottenham Hotspur at Stamford Bridge this evening. Chelsea had leading scorer Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink to thank for his double strike but Tottenham are still very much in this tie with a vital away goal from Les Ferdinand.
However, with history hanging over their head, it won't be easy for Spurs to overturn this deficit as it has now been an incredible 12 years or 26 games since Spurs last beat their London rivals and, at White Hart Lane, this record stretches back even further, to 1987 when current boss Glenn Hoddle was still a player at the club.
Although there was plenty of incidents on the pitch to talk about, including the inclusion of John Terry and Jody Morris in the Chelsea team, it will be off-the-field antics that will steal the headlines after further disruption from the stands. A glass beer bottle narrowly missed Ferdinand as the Spurs striker celebrated his goal in front of the home fans while visiting supporters appeared to throw coins at Hasselbaink as he received treatment near the sideline.
However, nothing can take away from an exciting and gripping Cup tie that was finished off with a stunning free-kick from Hasselbaink to give Chelsea a deserved lead. Although his second strike was the more impressive of the two it was Hasselbaink's opening goal that set Chelsea on their way after just 10 minutes. Once again, the lethal partnership of Hasselbaink and Eidur Gudjohnsen was behind the move and after a wonderful lay-off from Gudjohnsen, the Dutchman slotted the ball under the body of Kasey Keller.
But Tottenham gradually came back into the tie after a poor start and finished the stronger as the first-half drew to a close. However, they had to wait until the 65th minute for an equaliser and after he had produced the most glaring miss of the game just minutes earlier, Ferdinand made amends when he flicked the ball, via a deflection from goalkeeper Cudicini, into the back of the net.
But it was Hasselbaink who had the final say although Tottenham will feel hard done by, as Ledley King conceded a free kick when he was deemed to have handled the ball 30 yards out from goal, although television replays would suggest his touch was accidental. Up stepped Hasselbaink, and he blasted a stunning effort into the roof of the net beyond a shocked Keller who was rooted to the spot.
What goes around, comes around, and Spurs were lucky not to concede a penalty when referee Alan Wiley ignored a blatant trip on Mikael Forssell by Keller in the penalty area with just seven minutes remaining. The North London club managed to hold on and not concede any further goals and former Chelsea manager Hoddle will have a tough task ahead to guide Tottenham into the Worthington Cup final.
Filed by Amanda Fennelly
