Cole Palmer pelted with objects by Tottenham fans, Chelsea fans kicked out of home end

Ange Postecoglou, speaking to BBC Match of the Day: “It is a sore one, a painful one.

“We started the game really well but as our season has been going, we lose [Cristian] Romero after 20 minutes and that disrupts us a bit and they score straight after.

“We had moments to get our third and at half-time we were in a decent position. The second half is a ding dong, especially at the start, they scored but we had a big chance with Son, we didn’t take it and then they go 3-2 up.

“I thought both penalties were poor decisions by us, we have to show more discipline. In the end the critical moments got us.

“I think there were quality opportunities but I don’t think there was an abundance of them. I can’t remember the keepers making a load of top quality saves.

“We more than matched a good side in that department and when there is quality out there you are going to have moments.

“There were things we could have done better for sure.”

On whether Moises Caicedo should have been sent off: “That’s what is happening in the game now, referees are leaving it to other powers that be to make decisions.

“There were a couple that didn’t go our way but there’s nothing we can do about that. It’s out of our control.”

On picking up three further injuries: “Obviously Romero was really disappointing. He felt something in his quad after 20 minutes and couldn’t continue.

“Brennan [Johnson] wasn’t well and he tried to sort himself out at half time but he just wasn’t up to going out there.

“Micky [van de Ven] was just a bit of tiredness. The plan today was always to try and give him 60 or 70 minutes.”

“We played well today” 💪

Ange Postecoglou says losing Cristian Romero early on had a big influence on Tottenham’s 4-3 defeat to Chelsea 🔊 pic.twitter.com/TJpUEBAMNw

— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) December 8, 2024

“Arsenal, Man City & Liverpool wouldn’t slide like Cucurella did!”

Enzo Maresca continues to insist that Chelsea are far from being able to challenge for the Premier League title 🔵🏆 pic.twitter.com/tVdhCODdnt

— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) December 8, 2024

Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca, speaking to Sky Sports: “For the fans and for us, I said in the week that we were working to make the fans happy, and today they can be happy.”

On Marc Cucurella slipping twice and changing boots: “He said to me after the game that he was trying to bring emotion to the game.

“No, being serious, to come this stadium against this team and be 2-0 down, but continue then with the same plan on and off the ball and then second half we changed things tactically. I think overall we deserved to win.

“It’s more a question for Marc. They are mature enough to decide what boots they need for the game. The most important thing is that we were 2-0 but we continued the same way to create chances.”

On making changes at half time: “First of all we had a problem with Romeo Lavia. That meant Malo Gusto came on and we moved Moi [Caicedo] and changed the attacking midfielder.

“The changes were good.”

On Lavia’s problem: “He had a hamstring problem but now he is OK. We don’t want to take risks in December. Sometimes it’s better to make changes after 45 minutes rather than lose a player for five or six games.”

On Cole Palmer: “I know Cole from a long time ago and I always trust him in every aspect. He is a fantastic guy. He is learning how to play games when he is marked man-to-man, [Yves] Bissouma was with him all the game.

“He is learning, improving and scoring goals. That makes him happy and makes us happy.”

On maintaining a high level of performance: “The plan or the idea is to not let the players slow down. They can not drop because they know another player is waiting to come in.”

On keeping pace with title rivals: “Arsenal, City and Liverpool probably don’t slide – like Cucurella did. To be serious, we are not ready, we are far from these teams but we focus on day-by-day and trying to improve the team.”

Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca, speaking to BBC Match of the Day: “The first 10 or 15 minutes we conceded two easy goals but overall we were in control of the game.

“The reaction of the players was mentally strong both on and off the ball.”

How does Marc Cucurella slip and having a problem with his boots?: “That’s a question for him. I don’t know.

“It can happen. Unfortunately, it happened twice to the same player, but it can happen.”

On coming from behind: “We had some problems because of the goals we conceded. The other problems in the first half were due to the build-up. We didn’t concede many chances in the second half.”

On the high level of performance: “We used to change players game by game but today the players were all very good. Pedro Neto and Jadon Sancho were great on and off the ball.”

Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca speaking to BBC Radio 5 Live: “The celebration at the end was because I was very happy at the way to come back. Mentally we showed how strong we are. Overall we deserved to win the game.

“On the ball I think, even when we conceded the two goals, we were playing very good. The team was playing very good and then second half, up until he last five minutes we conceded nothing at all and created chances. We deserved to win the game.”

On Cole Palmer stealing the headlines: “For me, the headline today is for all the team. Especially for the two wingers: Pedro Neto and Jadon Sancho. They were fantastic on the ball but also off the ball they sacrificed. Today they were both fantastic.”

On teams around them dropping points: “We go game by game and we came here to see how we improve. This is the most important thing.”

Have the team made more progress than you maybe thought they would? “For sure, 100 per cent. We are ahead of my expectation, in terms of the way we play on the ball, off the ball and in terms of the results.

“We changed again tonight seven players and will make changes on Thursday and Sunday because they are good and all deserve to play.”

Chelsea winger Jadon Sancho speaking to BBC Match of the Day: “Going 2-0 down in the first half was not ideal but I knew we’d come back into the game when we got that first goal.

“Going in at halftime, the gaffer was telling us we were in the game. I have so much belief in the players so I knew we’d come out firing.

“They’re very aggressive and we knew we’d catch them if we broke the lines and beat the press. The gaffer told us to stay wide and create the one-on-ones.

“I’ve been working on my shooting a bit more. The staff and the players have been telling me otherwise.”

On Cucurella’s boots: “They’re going in the bin after this game. After the mistakes, I thought he played fantastic. We believe in Cucu.

“We’ve got back-to-back games every week, we need this rotation in the squad. There’s one team and then another team. It gets rotated and it works. We’ve got so many talented players and we push each other. I’m thankful I’m here.”

Tottenham captain Son Heung-min to Sky Sports: “It’s very disappointing. I don’t know what to say at the moment. We did such a good game in the first half an hour. We conceded very sloppy goals. It feels like we lost because of these small details. On such a big stage, you need to step up and score in these moments. I feel like I let the team down and I feel very sorry for the team.

“We can’t concede goals like this. We can’t dive into this situation. I can stay here all day talking about the mistakes but I’d rather blame me with the chance and I’d rather take the blame. I had a bit of a different thinking when I was running to the ball. I’m also human and I miss. I feel the pain because it’s such an important moment of the game. The team tried.

“We got to stick together in such difficult moments, it’s very important and it’s why we need big support. The players are very young and they need support more than before and more than we had. The fans were always supporting amazingly but I think it’s time the players also need to step up. We need some big support and big cheering up.”

Chelsea defender Levi Colwill, speaking to Sky Sports: “It means everything to beat our rivals. It was a great win.

“We knew it was going to be tough but we trust that when we play our football it will be fine.”

On Cole Palmer: “We have amazing players like Cole. When he scores big goals, he calms us down and hopefully it continues in the future.”

On coming back in games: “We were 2-0 down but none of the players were panicking, we knew we would create chances.”

On being in the title race: “We have still got a lot to improve on, when we’re ready to push for a title we won’t be 2-0 down in the first 10 minutes. That’s the level we need to be at and that’s what we need to keep working on.”