Roberto De Zerbi’s side controlled much of the match, while Chelsea struggled to create chances without the injured João Pedro and ended the game with 10 men after Cole Palmer was sent off.
Tottenham had 70% possession in the first half and created the clearer opportunities. Omar Marmoush shot straight at Mike Penders from Andy Robertson’s cutback, while Antonin Kinsky saved efforts from Palmer, Jordan Henderson and Morgan Rogers. James Maddison went off early in the second half, but Tottenham continued to control midfield through Mateus Fernandes, Sandro Tonali and the returning Conor Gallagher.
The breakthrough came in the 77th minute from a corner delivered by Fernandes. Penders came off his line under pressure from Jan Paul van Hecke and punched the ball into his own net. Chelsea’s response then collapsed when Palmer, already booked after an altercation involving Fernandes, received a second yellow card for a challenge on Gallagher and was dismissed in the 80th minute.
Mathys Tel settled the match seven minutes later with a solo goal. The Tottenham forward collected the ball inside his own half on the left, carried it forward, cut inside several defenders and drove a low shot into the bottom-left corner. Chelsea finished with seven attempts, their fewest in a Premier League match this season, while Tottenham recorded their second league win of the campaign and moved to 12th in the table on nine points.
Alonso said his team had not performed at its best and had found playing with 10 men difficult. De Zerbi said Tottenham had prepared well and were improving in their mentality, relationships and style. The victory also gave Tottenham consecutive league wins within six days, while Chelsea were left facing renewed questions over their attacking structure, set-piece defending and discipline.