Cole Palmer's penalty double secured a remarkable 4-3 victory over Tottenham as Chelsea closed the gap to Premier League leaders Liverpool to four points.
Chelsea beat nine-man Spurs 4-1 in the corresponding match last season but needed a great comeback as Marc Cucurella's mistakes gave the hosts an early 2-0 lead on Sunday.
Dejan Kulusevski's precise finish followed Dominic Solanke's well-executed opener at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, although Jadon Sancho reduced the deficit with a stunning finish with just 17 minutes on the clock.
Palmer leveled with his first penalty just after the hour mark after Yves Bissouma needlessly felled the marauding Moises Caicedo, who had earlier survived a VAR check for a lunging tackle on Pape Sarr in the first half.
The Chelsea talisman won another penalty after Sarr's foolish push, with Palmer coolly drilling past Fraser Forster, after Enzo Fernandez had put the Blues ahead with 17 minutes to go.
However, Son Heung-min's stoppage time looked set to spell a nerve-wracking end for Chelsea as the Spurs winger powered past Robert Sanchez following substitute James Maddison's cutback pass.
However, Enzo Maresca's side held on to move two points clear of Arsenal in second place and make ground on Liverpool, while Spurs are 11th after a second defeat in the space of three days.
Default.#CFC | #TOTCHE pic.twitter.com/c3NJlb89qv
— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) December 8, 2024
Data debrief: Chelsea powered by ice-cold Palmer
It seems there is no doubt that Palmer will score if Palmer steps in from 12 yards out, as the Chelsea man converted his 11th and 12th penalties in the Premier League on Sunday.
The former Manchester City man has a perfect record from his 12 penalty attempts, the most any player has taken in the competition without ever missing, surpassing Yaya Toure (11).
12 – Cole Palmer has scored all 12 penalties in the Premier League; the best 100% record of any player in the competition (overtaking Yaya Touré's 11/11). Cold. pic.twitter.com/pTsnOj1g8l
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) December 8, 2024
Palmer was also directly involved in 38 Premier League goals in 2024 (25 goals, 13 assists), the most in a calendar year by a Chelsea player in the competition.
Here he reached 50 goals (33 goals, 17 assists) in 48 Premier League games for Chelsea; only Erling Haaland for Man City (39), Andy Cole for Newcastle United (43) and Mohamed Salah for Liverpool (46) have ever reached that total in fewer games for an English top-flight club.
Palmer's heroics saw Tottenham lose an eleventh Premier League match after being two or more goals ahead – at least four more such defeats than any other side in Premier League history.
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