Tottenham star Dele Alli is under no illusions as to just how important their clash with Premier League champions Chelsea is on Sunday afternoon.
The Blues are the first visitors of the season as Spurs make Wembley Stadium their home for the next ten months, almost four months to the day since the two last met in the FA Cup semi-final when Antonio Conte’s side ran out 4-2 winners.
“Obviously every game is important and every game means a lot to the players and the fans,” Alli told the club’s official site.
“But there’s no hiding how big Sunday's match is to all of us.”
As well as that semi-final the two London clubs have had their fair share of fiery encounters over the past couple of seasons, most notably ‘The Battle of the Bridge’ when Chelsea ended Spurs’ title hopes in the 2015-16 season.
“We’ve got some history with Chelsea over the last couple of years and we’re going out there looking to win the game. Obviously we were disappointed with the FA Cup semi-final against them at Wembley, it was another cracking game, a real battle and we played very well on the day but Chelsea just had the edge. I’m sure it’s going to be another great game this time."
Mauricio Pochettino’s side did get one over on the west Londoners in the league last season, with Alli scoring twice in their final encounter at White Hart Lane, ending a 13-game winning streak for the eventual champions, and it’s one the England international remembers well: “Without doubt that game was among my highlights of my time at Spurs. It was such a big match, they were on a good run as well and we wanted to put an end to that. To win 2-0 and for me to score both goals was a great feeling."
