Tottenham Hotspur returned to the top of the table with a point after a well-fought draw at Stamford Bridge against a good Chelsea side. Although the scoreline was goal-less, the affair was far from a bore.

Both managers set their teams up tactically, with defences being on top for both sides, Chelsea looked the more promising but failed to create clear-cut chances. They dominated possession as they tried to carve out opportunities, but didn't manage to find the telling goal.

Frank Lampard will be happy at how his team worked off the ball, tracking back to limit the opportunities Spurs could make on the counter. The result sees Chelsea remain third in the league, only two points off their opponents today.

Jose Mourinho will no doubt be the happier manager out of the two, as his defensive approach allowed Tottenham to take a point back to North London.

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Story of the game

In a very tight opening 45 minutes, both managers would have been very pleased with how organised their defences were, limiting the spaces available to the attackers.

The evenly contested first-half saw Chelsea control possession as Spurs sat back and focused on keeping a strong defensive shape, similar to the tactics used against Manchester City last weekend.

When winning the ball back, Mourinho's side looked to spring on the counter and capitalise - the likes of Tanguay Ndombele and Harry Kane able to keep the ball effectively.

The blues thought they took the lead in the 11th minute, when Timo Werner finished well, following good work from Mason Mount, but the linesman flagged and replays showed it to be the right decision.

Moments later, Spurs looked to score on a well worked counter-attack, Stevie Bergwijn attempting to bend the ball into the top corner, just placing it over.

Both keepers had little to do in the first-half, Edouard Mendy saving an effort from Aurier, his only contribution.

Chelsea looked to find Tammy Abraham with balls into the box as the half went on, but to no avail.

Jose would have been the happier manager going into the interval as his side executed their gameplan well, giving them something to build on in the second-half. 

The second 45 minutes saw a similar pattern developing with neither managers making changes at half-time. 

Reece James put two great deliveries into the box from the right-hand side but Abraham failed to turn either into the back of the net.

As the half progressed, Chelsea applied more pressure looking to break the deadlock, moving the ball with more purpose as Tottenham legs tired.

Lampard tried to alter proceedings with the introduction of Christian Pulisic, fit again after recovering from injury.

New signing Hakim Ziyech skied a half-chance over the bar, a better touch before the half-volley may have resulted in a different outcome.

As the game went on, it was Chelsea the more dangerous side, trying to create opportunities to take the lead.

Mount came closest to giving the blues the advantage, driving forward and forcing Hugo Lloris into a fingertip save from the edge of the area, around the 80 minute mark.

Jose brought on Ben Davies for Bergwjin late on as he looked to settle for the point.

Olivier Giroud almost ghosted in behind Joe Rodon after a poor back pass from the Welshman, but he was unable to make the right connection in stoppage time.

In the final Spurs' breakaway, Giovani Lo Celso had an opportunity to play in a few of his teammates but attempted to catch Mendy out with a chipped effort on the edge of the box, much to the frustration of Jose Mourinho.

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Key takeaways

Mourinho finds midfield balance

The trio of Moussa Sissoko, Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg and Tanguay Ndombele were ever impressive in the Tottenham midfield.

Hojbjerg's role as the anchor of the three was performed with great efficiency, he provided cover for the centre-backs and kept possession of the ball well.

Sissoko operated alongside Hojbjerg, equally excelling in a defensive capacity, while also using his athleticism to push forward to support attacks, fulfilling an almost box-to-box role.

Perhaps the most dynamic of the three is Ndombele, almost reborn this season, he has performed well across a number of games.

Using his low centre of gravity, combined with the passing ability he possesses, he looked to make things happen and feed the front three.

Jose will have been impressed with Ndombele's discipline as he kept the midfield shape well, and worked hard off the ball.

Lampard lacks cutting edge

With Kai Havertz and Christian Pulisic only fit enough to make the Chelsea bench, Lampard started Werner out wide and Abraham down the middle.

The German striker finished well for his goal that was ruled offside, he looked to get in behind Aurier but was largely unsuccessful as the game went on.

Werner was withdrawn for Pulisic after a disappointing performance and failed to be a threat coming off the left-hand side, he seems to look most dangerous in the centre of an attacking three. 

Abraham was guilty of missing a handful of half-chances as Chelsea put balls into the box as they looked to play to his strengths, he was later withdrawn for Olivier Giroud. 

With Havertz returning from a positive Covid result, he didn't manage to come off the bench but was definitely missed in a midfield that cried out for the creativity he could provide.

Lampard will be pleased to have both Pulisic and Havertz back as he can now work on finding his most effective attacking system.

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