Good evening! Thank you very much for joining Sports Mole for tonight's London derby between Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur at Stamford Bridge. These two sides experienced contrasting emotions during the weekend games, which should make tonight's clash all the more intriguing. Let's start with a look at the hosts...

Suddenly things don't look so straightforward for Chelsea, who had been classed by many as Premier League champions as early as November following their incredible start to the season. However, the weekend saw the momentum swing slightly in Manchester City's favour as they cruised past Southampton with a very impressive victory, while Chelsea were held to a goalless draw with Sunderland at the Stadium of Light. The Blues are undoubtedly still heavy favourites for the title, but there is some encouragement for City now.

It is interesting how much of an impact one performance and one result can have on opinions of a team. It wasn't simply the fact that Chelsea failed to beat Sunderland on Saturday that had many questioning whether the title really was a one horse race, but the fact that they also failed to score. The Black Cats, who have by no means been defensively sound this season, became the first side to prevent Jose Mourinho's players from scoring and, in doing so, harmed the air of invincibility that they had cultivated in the early months of the campaign.

However, a solitary result does not change much in the long run and, if Chelsea can return to winning ways in style tonight then many will have forgotten that they even questioned the destination of the title. Despite a disappointing results last time out, Jose Mourinho's men remain unbeaten in all competitions this season - a run that now stretches 20 matches and includes 15 victories.

Indeed, their last defeat came all the way back in April when they succumbed to Atletico Madrid in the semi-finals of the Champions League, while they haven't lost a Premier League game since even earlier in April, when Sunderland beat them 2-1. That was 16 matches ago and, while the Invincibles' record of 49 is still a long way off, this Chelsea side certainly looks equipped to keep that run going for a while longer.

Despite drawing a blank against Sunderland, Chelsea remain the highest scorers in the division having found the back of the net 30 times in their 13 outings so far. That is thanks largely to Diego Costa hitting the ground running, although the bullish striker is suspended tonight having picked up his fifth yellow card of the season against the Black Cats. It will be interesting to see how they cope with his absence, but Chelsea do have goalscorers throughout their team so shouldn't lack cutting edge.

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That goal threat includes the defenders, who are also doing their job at the other end of the field efficiently at the moment. Only Southampton have conceded fewer than Chelsea's 11 goals this season, while the Blues have now kept three clean sheets in a row in all competitions. They have never been shipping lots of goals this season, but they had struggled to keep clean sheets at times, so that run will really please Mourinho. Their defensive record at home is the best in the league, while they have kept 11 clean sheets in their last 14 Premier League matches at Stamford Bridge.

Indeed, their home form on the whole has been very impressive this season, with the majority of their slip-ups coming on the road. They have won eight of their nine outings at Stamford Bridge this season, with the only exception being the 1-1 draw with Schalke on matchday one of the Champions League. That means that they have a 100% record in front of their own fans in the Premier League, winning all six of their home games. Looking even further back, they have won 28 of their last 34 home games in the league, losing just once in that time.

It is a tough ask for Tottenham tonight, then, but they will go into the match full of confidence following the weekend victory over Everton. Mauricio Pochettino had struggled to get his side playing as he would have wanted for most of the campaign, but it all seemed to click on Sunday at White Hart Lane. Spurs pressed and put the Toffees under relentless pressure when they didn't have the ball, eventually bouncing back from a Kevin Mirallas wonder goal and winning 2-1.

That result put them to within two points of the top four, although that gap has now grown back to five courtesy of Manchester United's victory over Stoke last night. However, with Arsenal, Liverpool and Everton all struggling for consistency too, Spurs are very much in the race for a Champions League spot despite their own indifferent start to the campaign. If Pochettino can consistently get his side playing as they did against Everton, then he will be confident of making a real push for those coveted top four places.

The Spurs boss will also be looking to keep up his side's recent never-say-die attitude. They have come from behind to record victory in three of their last four Premier League matches - albeit with a little help from a couple of red cards along the way. Aston Villa, Hull and Everton all scored the first goal against Spurs, but Pochettino's side came back to win each of those games 2-1. As a result, they have now rescued nine points from losing positions this season - a tally only tonight's opponents Chelsea can match.

There are still concerns for Pochettino to address at both ends of the field, though. Only Newcastle have scored fewer goals than Spurs in the top half of the table so far this season, with tonight's visitors managing just 18 in their 13 outings so far. They have conceded exactly the same amount, giving them the second worst defensive record in the top half behind only Liverpool.

Despite Spurs being viewed as having had a fairly poor start to the season, results have not actually been bad for them of late. They have won three games in a row in all competitions, with the victories over Hull and Everton sandwiching a 1-0 win over Partizan that secured their place in the next round of the Europa League. Looking even further back, they have won six of their last seven outings, with the only exception being the disappointing defeat to Stoke.

That loss came at White Hart Lane, where many of Tottenham's troubles have arisen recently. It has been a different story on the road, though, with Spurs faring better away from home than in front of their own fans. They have only lost one of their nine away games this season, while only Chelsea and Manchester City have picked up more points on their travels in the league. Their solitary defeat did come at the Etihad, however, and Spurs have generally struggled in the big games over recent seasons.

Indeed, the corresponding fixture between these two sides last season ended in an emphatic 4-0 victory for Chelsea, with Samuel Eto'o, Eden Hazard and a late Demba Ba brace giving the Blues a comprehensive three points. Spurs are also coming up against a side that has a fine record in London derbies over recent seasons, winning 12 and losing just one of their last 17 Premier League matches against fellow teams from the capital.

TEAM NEWS: The teams are in for both sides, and the headline news is that Didier Drogba is the man chosen to replace Costa up front for Chelsea. That is the one and only change for the hosts tonight, while Spurs have also opted to make just one switch, bringing in Erik Lamela in place of Roberto Soldado. Full team news for both sides coming right up...

CHELSEA STARTING XI: Courtois; Ivanovic, Cahill, Terry, Azpilicueta; Fabregas, Matic, Willian, Oscar, Hazard; Drogba

CHELSEA SUBS: Cech, Luis, Zouma, Mikel, Schurrle, Salah, Remy

TOTTENHAM STARTING XI: Lloris; Chiriches, Fazio, Vertonghen, Davies; Mason, Bentaleb, Lamela, Eriksen, Lennon; Kane

TOTTENHAM SUBS: Kaboul, Paulinho, Soldado, Vorm, Dier, Naughton, Chadli

What can we make of those two teams, then? Well, it is not a huge surprise to see Drogba chosen to replace Costa, with the Ivorian striker seemingly having overtaken Loic Remy in the pecking order recently. The absence of Costa is clearly a big blow for the Blues, but Drogba is certainly not a bad replacement to bring in. He has scored three and assisted four more in his last eight league games against Spurs.

Aside from that it is an unchanged team, with Mourinho very clear on what his first-choice XI is at the moment. Willian, Oscar and Hazard are the preferred trio behind the striker, although it is something of a surprise not to see any rotation in that area given the two games in such a short space of time. Of that trio, Hazard in particular has shone this season, and he may well be the main goal threat tonight in the absence of Costa.

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The midfield duo of Fabregas and Matic have received plenty of plaudits so far this season, and rightly so. They provide such an impressive balance to the team, with Fabregas's creativity and Matic's dirty work being such an effective partnership. Both players have been in sensational form in the current campaign and if they are on top of their game again tonight then Tottenham will have their work cut out.

The back five also remains untouched, which is no surprise given the form they have been in recently. Cahill and Terry are arguably the best centre-back pairing in the league, while Ivanovic and Azpilicueta are among the best full-backs in the division too. Couple that with the towering presence of Courtois, who has such an impressive command over his area, and you have a formidable defence. It is no surprise that they have kept three clean sheets in a row.

Harry Kane is the man charged with breaching that defence, and he will be full of confidence given his form throughout the season. His goals in the Europa League and League Cup have earned him a regular spot in the Premier League, and he now appears to be Tottenham's first-choice striker. He didn't get on the scoresheet against Everton at the weekend but was the man of the match and will look to add to his growing reputation tonight. It is something of a surprise to see Soldado left out after he ended a drought of 627 minutes with the winner against Everton, but Pochettino clearly does not want to play with two strikers against this Chelsea side.

Lamela is the man who replaces Soldado in the side, and fans are still waiting to see the best of the Argentine. He has provided moments of brilliance, such as his rabona goal in the Europa League, but has not been able to come up with big performances on a regular basis. Eriksen has been more of a hit since his arrival, however, and his goal against Everton means that now only Yaya Toure and Steven Gerrard have scored more goals from midfield than the Dane in 2014.

Chiriches has overcome a knock to start at right-back once again, while Kyle Naughton is also on the bench having served his recent suspension. Vertonghen put in a fine display against Everton, but he and Fazio will need to be at their best again tonight if they are to keep Chelsea at bay. No doubt they will have studied how Sunderland dealt with the Blues and will look to replicate that tonight.

PREDICTION: We're 10 minutes away from kickoff at Stamford Bridge, which means that it is time for a prediction! Spurs will fancy their chances a lot more now than they may have a week ago going into this match following results at the weekend, but they still have their work cut out tonight. Chelsea have been imperious at home so far this season, and I can't see them losing here tonight. I'm going for a routine 2-0 victory for the hosts.

A Chelsea victory was the common consensus on the Sports Mole sofa this week. Have a look at what we had to say in our video preview below:

It is fair to say that Spurs have a pretty torrid record at Stamford Bridge over the years. They have not won here in the Premier League, with their last victory coming way back in 1990. Since then, they have drawn eight and lost 14 of their meetings in West London, while they have won just five of their 57 meetings home and away since that victory. It certainly isn't their favourite place to visit!

There are three other Premier League matches taking place tonight, including the likes of Arsenal, Southampton and Everton - all matches that could impact these two teams tonight. We have live coverage of each and every one of them here on Sports Mole, while I will also be keeping you up to date with major events from around the country as and when they happen.

This is the first time this season that Chelsea have really been under a bit of pressure to get a result, as defeat could leave them just three points clear of City at the top of the table. As I mentioned earlier, they are still heavy favourites for the title, but failure to win tonight could make it more of a race than the procession many expected.

Before kickoff there will be a minute of applause for former Chelsea manager John Neal, who passed away last week.

KICKOFF: Chelsea get us underway as they look to maintain their unbeaten start and return to winning ways. Can they do it or will Spurs end their Stamford Bridge curse?

Quick start to the match from both sides. Chelsea went straight onto the attack and played some probing football on the edge of the Tottenham box, but the visitors have responded and are now on the front foot themselves with a couple of corners in quick succession.

CLOSE! Spurs earn an early free kick in a very good crossing position as Kane makes a good, direct run towards the box. Ivanovic clips his heel and the youngster goes down to earn the set piece. The ball goes all the way through and is picked up by Chiriches on the right, and his cross is nodded narrowly over by Vertonghen.

There was a clash of heads in that incident there, and both Vertonghen and Cahill are feeling the effects. The latter looks to have come off worse and, being a head injury, it could be an issue for the centre-back.

Both Cahill and Vertonghen come straight back onto the field and don't seem to be suffering an lingering effects from that challenge.

OFF THE BAR! Almost the perfect start for Spurs, who have been very bright so far! The visitors string together some nice passes on the right before Lennon swings a cross into the box. Kane peels off Cahill in the middle and steers a fine header towards the top corner but, with Courtois beaten, it comes back off the crossbar. Very unlucky for the young striker.

Eriksen breaks forward for the visitors and is perhaps not selfish enough as he tries to find Kane instead of taking his man on himself. Spurs have certainly maintained their intensity from the Everton match.

CLOSE! Perhaps Cahill is still feeling the impact of that head injury, as once again Kane gets the better of him here. The youngster catches him in possession and drives down the left. He advances into the box before drilling a low effort narrowly past the far post. Not far away at all from the striker, who could have had a brace already.

Drogba's touch has let him down on a few occasions already tonight. The ball has been slid into him on the edge of the box a couple of times and a better touch may have allowed him a shot on goal, but he has shown too much of the ball to the defenders.

There were big questions regarding whether Spurs could reproduce their performance against Everton tonight, and so far they have done so. They have pressed well off the ball and attacked quickly when in possession themselves. They have been the better team in the opening 15 minutes.

SAVE! Nice football from Chelsea as Terry, Willian and Drogba all combine to set up Fabregas, but the Spaniard's effort is comfortable for Lloris, who gets everything behind his save.

Chelsea have been on the back foot for much of the opening 20 minutes, but they break the deadlock here! Hazard picks the ball up outside the area and plays a one-two to Drogba to make it into the box. The angle is against the Belgian, but he hits it low with sufficient power to beat Lloris, who perhaps should have done better at his near post.

SHOT! Spurs look to come up with an instant reaction, but it is an optimistic effort from Bentaleb. The Algerian goes for goal from 30 yards but drags his effort well wide.

Lloris could perhaps have done better for the first goal, but he is certainly at fault here. His kick is poor and straight to Hazard, who gives it to Oscar on the edge of the box. The Brazilian threads a through-ball to Drogba, who takes two touches before firing it past the French goalkeeper.

Could that be game over already? Spurs made such a bright start to the match, but two goals in the space of three minutes have seen Chelsea take complete control of this one. It would take a remarkable comeback for Spurs to avoid yet another defeat at Stamford Bridge now.

UPDATE: There have been a couple of quickfire goals at the Stadium of Light too, and originally it was good news for Chelsea as Connor Wickham gave Sunderland the lead against Manchester City. However, Sergio Aguero responded immediately for the visitors and it is now 1-1.

It will be interesting to see how Chelsea approach this match from now on. How many times have we seen a Mourinho side go 2-0 up in the first half and shut up shop for the rest of it? It certainly wouldn't be a surprise to see that happen again here, but Spurs could well be there for the taking. It was 4-0 last season, and a similar scoreline is not out of the question tonight.

Nice football from the visitors as they knock the ball about sharply on the edge of the Chelsea penalty area. However, neither Lennon, Lamela or Eriksen can find space for a shot, and eventually the defence crowd Spurs out.

Those two goals, unsurprisingly, have completed changed the complexion of this match. While there appeared to be a way through for the visitors before they fell behind, now Kane is getting very little joy up against the Chelsea defence. Had he taken either of his early chances then this would have been a very different game.

Lloris hasn't had the best of times so far tonight. He could have done better for the first goal and was at fault for the second, while his distribution on the whole has been suspect. An uncharacteristically poor game for the Frenchman so far.

SAVE! Spurs look for a route back into the match down the left side as Davies picks up the ball on an overlapping run. He opts to pull the ball back to Mason on the edge rather than crossing it into the box, but the midfielder's effort is straight at Courtois.

UPDATE: The deadlock has been broken at Goodison Park, and it is the home side who have got the goal. Romelu Lukaku has put Everton 1-0 up against Hull on Merseyside.

Poor from Drogba as he takes a while lining up a free kick, only to fire it a long way off target. It was in a decent position for the striker, around 30 yards from goal and just left of centre, but his effort was high and wide.

UPDATE: Manchester City have completed the turnaround against Sunderland, making it 2-1 at the Stadium of Light courtesy of a Stevan Jovetic strike.

SAVE! Easy one for Lloris this time as he gets his body behind a tame strike from Willian. The Brazilian let fly with a low effort from just outside the box, but it was a poor one and was as routine as they come for the Spurs keeper.

Drogba started this one slowly, but he has claimed a goal and an assist so far and is causing the Tottenham defence plenty of problems now. Here is a picture of him celebrating his goal with Branislav Ivanovic.

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CHANCE! Big chance for Chelsea to grab a third right on the stroke of half time. It is poor from Chiriches, who gifts the ball to Oscar in the corner. The Brazilian moves into the area and slides his pass back to his compatriot Willian, but once again his shot is tame and Lloris gets down to make the stop.

There will be two minutes of added time at the end of this first half.

Mike Dean brings an end to the first half at Stamford Bridge, and it has been yet another good one for Chelsea. They have responded expertly to their goalless draw with Sunderland last time out and are in complete control against Spurs now, leading by two at the break. It is hard to see a way back for the visitors, it must be said.

The opening goal came courtesy of an Eden Hazard strike following some nice link-up play with Didier Drogba. The Belgian picked the ball up on the edge of the area and span away from Lennon before playing a one-two with the Ivorian striker to move into the box. The defenders failed to track the run, and Hazard lashed his low effort past Lloris at the near post.

If Lloris will feel that he may have done better with the opener, he will be hugely disappointed with his part in the second goal just three minutes later. His clearance fell straight to Hazard, who gave it to Oscar. The Brazilian playmaker then slid a lovely through-ball in to Drogba, who fired it past the Spurs keeper to double his side's lead.

Those goals really changed the game as, up until that point, Spurs had looked dangerous. They were actually the better side in the opening 15 minutes and could well have been a couple of goals up themselves before Hazard's opener. Kane was responsible for both of their clear chances, the first of which saw him latch on to a Lennon cross before planting a fine header against the crossbar.

Kane had peeled off Cahill for that header, and he got the better of the Chelsea defender again shortly afterwards, robbing him of possession on the left and charging into the box. The angle was against the young striker, but he still came very close to breaking the deadlock with a drilled effort across the face of goal. However, is went just wide of the far post as Cahill's blushes were spared.

Chelsea have not had a scare since taking the lead, however, with the back four getting to grips with Kane and keeping the youngster quiet. The Blues even had a clear chance to make it 3-0 right on the stroke of half time, but Willian's effort was poor after Chiriches had gifted possession to Oscar in a dangerous position.

There is a concern surrounding the fitness of Drogba at the moment, however, as the striker went down right on the half-time whistle and needed to be helped off the pitch by the physio. It will be a blow if he is unable to continue as he has arguably been the man of the match so far with a goal and an assist. Remy is on the bench, though, so Chelsea do have a ready made replacement.

KICKOFF: Spurs get us back underway for the second half, and there has been a change at the break for Chelsea. However, it is not Drogba who goes off. Instead, Cahill, who got a knock to his head in the first half, makes way to be replaced by Kurt Zouma.

Quiet start to the half from both sides. It will be interesting to see how they both approach this match now as Spurs need to push for a goal, but can't afford to let the likes of Hazard, Oscar and Willian run wild on the counter. Chelsea, meanwhile, often take their foot off the pedal in the second half with such a lead.

YELLOW CARD! The first card of the evening is shown to Chiriches, who tugged Hazard back as the Belgian threatened to race away.

YELLOW CARD! That is swiftly followed by another caution, this time for Matic, who tripped Kane from behind having got the wrong side of his man.

SHOT! Nice football from the visitors as Kane flicks the ball inside for Eriksen, who carries it inside and lines up a shot from 25 yards. He tries to wrap his foot around it and bend it into the far top corner, but his strike flies a few yards wide.

Spurs have played some decent football since the break and have picked up possession in some good positions. There is still no way through this Chelsea defence right now, but they have made the better start to this second half.

UPDATE: Manchester City have opened up a two-goal cushion of their own against Sunderland now, Pablo Zabaleta making it 3-1 to the champions. It looks like they'll be staying six points behind Chelsea.

Almost lovely from Fabregas. He picks the ball up around 35 yards from goal and immediately looks for the floated ball over the top. He pings it over the defence, but it is just a yard or so too far in front of Oscar and runs through to Lloris.

SPURS SUBS: Double change for Spurs as Nacer Chadli and Paulinho replace Lennon and Mason in midfield.

Half a chance for Chelsea as Hazard and Oscar combine down the left channel. The latter goes for goal but his mis-hit effort flies towards Drogba, who just can't adjust his body in time to turn it goalwards.

UPDATE: Hull have levelled things up against Everton at Goodison Park courtesy of a Sone Aluko strike just minutes after he had come on as a sub. Tottenham wouldn't mind their own subs having a similar impact here!

CHANCE! Decent sight of goal for Spurs as Vertonghen drifts to the near post to latch on to a corner. He could do with glancing his header across goal, but gets too much on it and puts his effort well over.

SAVE! Bullish play from Drogba as he looks to cap off a quick counter with a goal. Again it was Oscar and Hazard who linked up to play the ball through to the striker, who held off Fazio before going for goal on the turn. However, it is a tame effort and Lloris is able to make the save.

Good, alert goalkeeping from Courtois to deny Chadli. Lamela looked to inject a bit of creativity into the attack with a clever scooped ball over the defence, but the Chelsea keeper was quick off his line to beat his compatriot to the ball.

CHELSEA SUB: Drogba had been beginning to tire in the last few moments, and as a result he makes way here to be replaced by Loic Remy.

Spurs have played fairly well in this second half, but they are yet to really test Courtois. They haven't troubled the keeper since Kane's two early chances and need to turn their possession into chances sooner rather than later.

UPDATE: There has been another goal in the Stadium of Light, and Manchester City are cruising now. Aguero has his second goal of the evening to make it 4-1 against Sunderland.

That is well and truly game over now. Remy races on to a clipped ball over the top and beats Vertonghen to the ball before cutting inside and leaving the Spurs defender on the floor. Fazio comes across and tries to cover, but Remy coolly rolls his effort into the bottom corner. A very composed finish from the Frenchman.

SPURS SUB: The visitors make a change in the immediate aftermath of that goal as Roberto Soldado replaces Lamela.

CHANCE! Decent chance for Chelsea to extend their lead further here as Willian races forward with the ball. He finds Oscar, but the midfielder drags his effort a few yards wide of the target.

CHELSEA SUB: Chelsea also make their final change of the match as Fabregas is replaced by John Obi Mikel for the final 15 minutes or so.

It really has been a joyless evening for Spurs so far. They have not played too badly overall, but they simply haven't been able to find a way through since Chelsea opened the scoring. The curse of Stamford Bridge continues to haunt the visitors, who will have taken eight of the last 75 available points here if this stays the same.

There could well be more goals in this for Chelsea too. They are playing with such confidence at the moment and, the form the likes of Hazard, Oscar and Willian are in, you wouldn't bet against a fourth.

Spurs are still pushing for a goal of their own, however, and Chiriches almost sets one up with a fine cross in towards the front post. Soldado is just short of reaching it, however, and Chelsea are able to clear.

Hint of a penalty shout for Chelsea as Azpilicueta spins past his marker on the byline and darts into the area. He is bundled over inside the box, but Mike Dean says no penalty. It was a clumsy challenge, but the referee made the right call there.

Costa's absence certainly hasn't been felt too much here tonight. Drogba, his replacement, provided an assist and a goal while Remy also came on and got a goal of his own. Here is the latter celebrating his strike:

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A late worry for Chelsea as Willian goes down following a clash with Davies. The hosts have made all of their subs so will have to end this match with 10 men if the Brazilian is unable to continue. He should be fine, though.

SHOT! Bentaleb looks to provide a late spark for his side and give the visiting fans something to shout about, but his effort from 25 yards is high and wide of the target.

SAVE! Almost a fourth for the hosts as Willian picks the ball up on the left and cuts inside. Not for the first time, though, his effort lacks sufficient power and Lloris is able to get down and make a save.

There will be three minutes of added time at the end of this match.

Chelsea make a swift return to winning ways with a comprehensive 3-0 victory over Tottenham. Hazard, Drogba and Remy got the goals for the hosts, who remain six points clear at the top of the table and are now 21 games unbeaten in all competitions this season. They were simply too good for Spurs today, despite the visitors seeing plenty of the ball throughout.

That is all we have time for this evening! Thank you very much for joining Sports Mole for what was an impressive display of strength from Chelsea, who cruised to victory over Spurs despite being without their top scorer. I will leave you with our match report and be sure to stick around for reaction, analysis and player ratings. From me, though, it is goodbye for now!