Romelu Lukaku in Action As Chelsea Defeat Tottenham to Move Closer to Carabao Cup Final

• Carabao Cup clash between Chelsea and Tottenham ended in a 2-0 win for the Stamford Bridge side as they moved closer to the final
• Lukaku returned to the squad after being dropped for his controversial interview while, Jorginho and Saul manned the midfield
• A 5th minute strike by Kai Havertz following a deflected effort from close range as well as a Ben Davies’ own goal sealed the win for the hosts

Stamford Bridge club Chelsea took charge of their Carabao Cup semi-final clash following a 2-0 win over rivals Tottenham in the first leg at the Stamford Bridge, Football.London reports.

Embattled Romelu Lukaku returned to the squad after being dropped for his controversial interview while Jorginho and Saul returned into the midfield as N’Golo Kante and Kovacic dropped out.

How it went down

It was an early lead for the Blues courtesy a 5th minute strike by Kai Havertz following a deflected effort from close range.

Spanish club planning blockbuster move for embattled Arsenal captain Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang

Football

Impressive Marcos Alonso was instrumental to that goal after he raced down from the left flank, and ten minutes before halftime, Ben Davies deflected Hakim Ziyech’s cross while trying to clear at the far post to make it two-nil for the home side.

Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel made early changes in the second half Havertz was unable to recover from an early knock and was replaced by countryman Timo Werner.

Spurs nearly pulled a goal back in the final five minutes when Bryan Gil skipped past one challenge before picking out Giovani Lo Celso but Kepa Arrizabalaga was on hand to make the save as the Blues held on for the win and the clean sheet, Daily Mail reports.

Chelsea confident of keeping Rudiger

Meanwhile, Chelsea football club has been given a huge boost in their bid to tie highly-rated defender Antonio Rudiger to a new deal at Stamford Bridge.

Leicester vs Liverpool: Lookman Scores Winner as The Reds Stumble in Title Race

Football

The 28-year-old contract runs out at the end of the season and talks between the defender and Chelsea seem to have hit a brick wall after reports emerged top clubs including Real Madrid, PSG, and Manchester United were showing interest in the German international.

It is now confirmed Real Madrid are no longer interested in signing Chelsea centre-back, who they had previously been targeting on a free transfer as his current contract is set to expire next summer.

Liverpool vs Arsenal postponed

Sports Brief earlier reported that Liverpool’s Carabao semi-final fixture against Arsenal on Thursday, January 6, has been postponed as the Anfield club has been ravaged by rising Covid cases forcing the club’s training base to be shut down.

The Reds have seen cases of positive Covid cases on the rise with both managerial and playing staff all contracting the virus with the latest being assistant manager Pep Lijnders.

Mother of West ham United star watch from the stands as son helps club to Premier League victory

Football

Jurgen Klopp, Roberto Firminho and Fabinho have all returned a positive PCR test result in the past week and all were excluded in the Red’s trip to Chelsea last Sunday with Liverpool securing an entertaining 2-2 draw at Stamford Bridge.