Tottenham 2-2

Independent:

Chelsea 2 Tottenham Hotspur 2
Chelsea closing in on crack at big time again
Sam Wallace 

They are not quite the “deadly machine”, the description Andre Villas-Boas gave to the Chelsea team of the Jose Mourinho era, but the present incarnation is slowly but surely finding its way towards a place in the Champions League elite next summer. 

Two games from the end of the season and after the tumult of another mad nine months, Rafa Benitez is within reach of delivering them to the promised land of Champions League football. If it falls nicely for them this summer Jose Mourinho will breeze back in for another crack at the big time and he might even bring Wayne Rooney with him.
It was far from a perfect night and twice they lost the lead before finally losing the initiative at the end of the match to a Tottenham Hotspur side who suddenly found the confidence to go for the win. Rarely has Gareth Bale, twice voted the outstanding player of the season, looked quite so mediocre recently as he did tonight but even so Chelsea came close in those final stages to giving him a Hollywood ending to the evening.
That was a Bale free-kick conceded on the edge of the area by a tired Ramires as Chelsea threatened to undo all the good work that had put them in a position of supremacy. There were periods of the game when they might have ground Spurs into the dust, but to the credit of Andre Villas-Boas' team they never gave up hope that they might prise a victory and after their second equaliser, from Gylfi Sigurdsson, they almost did.
Yet the result means that the chance to claim a Champions League place is now out of Spurs' hands. Even if they take six points from their last two games they need Arsenal, one point ahead in fourth place, to drop points against Wigan at home or Newcastle away in order to let their rivals back in. Three points ahead of them in third place, Chelsea are still catchable in theory but that is looking like a tall order for Villas-Boas's side.
Not that Benitez himself will expect any thanks from his club's supporters for the position Chelsea find themselves in now. He was booed for bringing on Yossi Benayoun for Oscar in the last six minutes and then barracked with the chant “You don't know what you're doing”, while Frank Lampard languished on the bench. As for John Terry this was the third straight game he spent as a substitute.
As exercised as he ever gets, Benitez responded to questions about his substitutions after the game with a degree of indignation. “In Spain we have a phrase 'It's easy to see the bulls from the fence,'” he said. There was no question that his team tired at the end of their 66th game of the season and let Spurs back into a match they should have won long before that.
A tumble from Ramires after the hour when he had only Hugo Lloris to beat with Chelsea 2-1 up at that stage, was a pivotal moment in the game. Had he scored, Chelsea would surely have gone on to win the game and yet they found themselves dragged back into it.
Spurs were blitzed for much of the first half and the goals from Oscar and Ramires only represented a fraction of the dominance that Chelsea had at times in the game. There was not much margin for doubt, from the very start, that this was a game that lived up to the billing. Among the home side it was mostly the brilliant Eden Hazard who stood out.
This was arguably Benitez's strongest team, with the exception of Fernando Torres who was picked ahead of Demba Ba in attack. David Luiz started in midfield and you could quibble over his best position but otherwise this team looked like the A-string.
On ten minutes Gary Cahill met Juan Mata's corner from the right and at the back post Oscar got a head to the ball to steer it inside the goal. When Michael Dawson got his head in front of a Hazard shot from the left that looked destined for the far corner of Lloris' goal, you wondered how long they could hold out before the second goal arrived.
Within a minute Spurs had got their equaliser. Between them Hazard and Ramires conspired to lose possession in midfield to Scott Parker and Lewis Holtby and then Emmanuel Adebayor was fed the ball deep inside his own half. He ran and ran and kept on running with Cahill inexplicably backing off when a challenge would have diverted the Spurs man. That took nothing away from a glorious lofted shot over Petr Cech and into the far corner.
Chelsea's second goal, however, was a masterpiece. It started with a throw-in on the right side in their own half and five passes later, Torres played in Ramires who stuck the ball beyond Lloris with his toe.
As they had at the start of the game, Chelsea took a hold of the match at the start of the second half and should have put the result beyond the reach of their opponents. Never more so than when Ramires fell over at the crucial moment just after the hour.
In one act of insouciance, David Luiz followed Holtby all the way over to the touchline and brazenly eavesdropped his conversation with Villas-Boas. Later the Spurs manager accused his former player of something and a sharp exchange took place between them. “He's a friend of mine,” Villas-Boas later explained about Luiz, “it's part of his character.”
Spurs came again, this time through Sigurdsson who had replaced the disappointing Aaron Lennon just after the hour. Spurs's second equaliser looked to have a moment of offside in it, on this occasion when Adebayor received the ball from Benoit Assou-Ekotto. His flick found Sigurdsson who demonstrated what a confident finisher he is with a shot beyond Cech. 
Spurs have won just three in their last eight league games and must prevail over Stoke City on Sunday to have any chance of staying in contention for the Champions League places. Villas-Boas said that Moussa Dembele has an “80 per cent chance” of being fit for the game.
There was that late Bale free-kick which floated harmlessly into Cech's arms when the destiny of the season could have been altered. He cannot rescue them every time, although they have rarely needed a win as much as they did tonight.

Man of the match Hazard.
Match rating 8/10.
Referee M Dean (Merseyside).
Attendance 41,581.

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Guardian:
Emmanuel Adebayor inspires Tottenham recovery for draw at Chelsea
Dominic Fifield at Stamford Bridge

Tottenham Hotspur would normally celebrate a performance like this to the rafters, not least in praise of their team's powers of recovery after they twice trailed in an arena that has tended to choke their resolve. Yet, in only drawing across the capital at Chelsea, André Villas-Boas's side have surrendered the initiative to Arsenal in the race for the top four. This was spirited and, as their manager stressed, ultimately impressive. It might also prove damaging.
The visiting support were left to comprehend that confused reality. To have secured a point when, at times, the home side had threatened to run riot felt like an achievement. Spurs had weathered the storm, clinging on as Chelsea passed up opportunities to eke out breathing space, then introduced fresh legs as the home side started to tire, the recent onerous schedule sapping their energy. This team has made a habit of scoring late since the turn of the year. It was as if Villas-Boas had devised a risky if cunning plan which, for a while, threatened to pay off.
One of the substitutes, Gylfi Sigurdsson, plundered an equaliser that might easily have been ruled out with Emmanuel Adebayor offside in the build-up and, in stoppage time, Gareth Bale lined up a free-kick some 20 yards out. A mixture of anticipation and apprehension crackled around the stadium as the Welshman stood poised at the top of his run-up, waiting to deliver another defining moment in a season of personal triumph. But, while his attempt bypassed the defensive wall, it was easy for Petr Cech to claim and, as the goalkeeper clutched the ball, Tottenham's destiny had effectively been ripped from their hands.
They will travel to Stoke on Sunday knowing they must now win their last two games – they host Sunderland on the final afternoon – and hope Arsenal, a point clear of them in fourth, stumble against either Wigan or Newcastle. Chelsea can technically also still be caught, but Rafael Benítez's side need to muster only one win from their final two games to secure their own top-four finish.
It rather summed up the bizarre emotions whipped up by a rumbustious contest that it was the home side's interim manager, whose side technically benefited more from a draw, who was left to bemoan this as a wasted opportunity. "Twice we had the advantage and we could have killed off the game," he said. "Twice we didn't do it."
It was profligacy that let his side down. Chelsea had swarmed all over their visitors, scoring at either end of a breathless first half and creating the better chances thereafter, only to wilt as that fatigue kicked in. Their movement had tormented Spurs up to then, with Eden Hazard irrepressible – until substituted after sustaining a kick – and Juan Mata conjuring at his side. It was the Spaniard's corner that was nodded on by Gary Cahill, out-jumping his markers from a standing start, for Oscar to touch in the opening goal at the far post after eluding Scott Parker.
The hosts' second, six minutes from the interval, was born of a throw-in deep inside their own half with David Luiz, Ramires, Oscar and Fernando Torres exchanging passes before the striker's sublime touch beyond Jan Vertonghen and a retreating Spurs back-line. Ramires burst through before Michael Dawson or Parker could react and toe-poked a splendid finish across Hugo Lloris. Hazard, exploiting Dawson's slip, might have added a third only to sky the ball high and wide. Even more critical was Ramires's slip as he prepared to convert Mata's square pass, the Brazilian's right leg buckling on the slippery surface and the chance drifting away.
On such opportunities can contests such as this turn, and Villas-Boas could be thankful for the miss. This had been his first return to the club that had sacked him 14 months ago, unimpressed with the progress he had instigated during a 256-day tenure. Even after the game he never veered from his insistence that there was no personal motivation born of that stunted spell in succeeding back at Stamford Bridge at his former employers' expense, but that was only because this game meant so much more to his team. Spurs had not won here in 23 years and might have subsided once behind, but their response demonstrated underlying strength of character, even if Chelsea could curse their sloppiness at each of the goals they shipped.
Spurs' first had stemmed from a home corner, Hazard and then Ramires failing to retain possession. Emmanuel Adebayor collected in his own half, advanced unchecked and, when Cahill refused to spring and stifle his progress, curled a fine fourth goal of the league season beyond Cech. It was a wonderful finish and the Togolese was also heavily involved in the second riposte. Adebayor might have been offside as he collected Benoît Assou-Ekotto's cross but his back-heel was still shrewd enough to cut out Cahill, with Sigurdsson scoring with glee.
That set up a furious finale but Spurs could muster no more. Villas-Boas still beamed through his post-match assessment, clinging to the positives from his team's display, but he must now hope for favours from elsewhere if his season's objective is to be achieved. It was Arsenal who potentially benefited most of all from a stalemate.

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Telegraph:

Chelsea 2 Tottenham Hotspur 2
Jeremy Wilson

After the retirement of Sir Alex Ferguson, Arsene Wenger was given another very good reason to smile on Wednesday night.
With his greatest adversary finally departing from the Premier League landscape, Arsenal were the main beneficiaries as Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur effectively punched each other into submission at the end of a thrilling London derby.
It was a high-quality match played at a breathless pace but, in the final analysis, a 2-2 draw did not really suit either club. Chelsea need another win to ensure a top-four finish so cannot completely switch their focus to next Wednesday’s Europa League final against Benfica.
Tottenham twice fought back from a losing position, but their hopes of reaching the Champions League is now out of their hands. Should Arsenal win their remaining matches against Wigan and Newcastle, they will again finish above their north London rivals and could yet leapfrog Chelsea in third.
Despite being the last home match before another big European final, this was also another evening of considerable rancour between Chelsea’s fans and Rafael Benítez.
In a clear sign that they could also miss the Benfica showpiece, John Terry and Frank Lampard were again left on the bench. There was then mild unrest at the decision to replace Eden Hazard with Victor Moses ­followed by outright rebellion at the introduction of Yossi Benayoun in favour of Oscar.
Benítez claimed not to have heard the abuse and explained that he was simply trying to bring on players with the energy to contain Tottenham’s increasing threat on the flanks.
“We didn’t have the legs — the tempo was too high,” he said. When it was put to him that the tactic had not worked, Benitez cryptically referred to the ­difference between being in the heat of battle on the touchline and looking on from the stands.
“It’s easy to see the bulls from the fence,” Benítez said. “We were weak in the wide areas and were a bit tired — and I didn’t see any other wingers on the bench.”
In their 66th game of the season, Chelsea were entitled to be fatigued but they had been dominant throughout the first hour. Andre Villas-Boas, on his return to Stamford Bridge for the first time since being sacked last year, had made a point of shaking hands with both Lampard and Terry before the match but was helpless as Chelsea delivered glimpses of the expansive style he had once tried to implement.
Juan Mata, inevitably, was the catalyst behind most of their best play and quickly went close with a volley after Fernando Torres released him.
Chelsea then forced a corner after Tom Huddlestone cynically tripped the outstanding Hazard. Gary Cahill headed Mata’s cross, Oscar evaded Scott Parker and timed his run ­perfectly to give Chelsea the lead.
The home fans were soon sufficiently confident to start loudly informing Tottenham that “you’ve only got one player”. Gareth Bale had certainly chosen a bad night to be anonymous but the Chelsea supporters had spoken too soon. Lewis Holtby then pounced on confusion between Hazard and ­Ramires before feeding the ball to Adebayor just inside Chelsea’s half.
Inexplicably, both César Azpilicueta and Cahill back-pedalled and simply invited Adebayor into a shooting position. Petr Cech had also wandered off his line and, sensing his opportunity, Adebayor brilliantly lifted the ball over the Chelsea goalkeeper and into the top corner.
Tottenham were level yet the momentum still remained with Chelsea. Torres, finally playing without his mask, responded with a moment of individual class and passed for Ramires to finish clinically past Hugo Lloris.
Chelsea then had a succession of chances to put the game beyond Tottenham, most notably when Mata galloped clear following a wonderful touch from Hazard only for Ramires to lose his footing with the goal at his mercy.
There was a further moment of comedy when David Luiz crept to the touchline and listened in to Villas-Boas’s instructions to Lewis Holtby while nodding in mock agreement. Luiz and Villas-Boas were then embroiled in a rather more heated exchange over the Brazilian’s challenge on Gyfli Sigurdsson.
Revenge arrived on 80 minutes when Luiz failed to track Sigurdsson’s run and the Spurs midfielder ghosted unmarked into the penalty area to convert Adebayor’s clever pass.
Benítez complained that Adebayor was offside but did not dispute that Tottenham had ultimately deserved a point from what Villas-Boas called “the game of the season”. He also ruefully acknowledged that Tottenham’s bid to join the European elite depends on their rivals’ results.
“Hopefully there’ll be a slip up – anything can still happen,” Villas-Boas


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Mail;

Chelsea 2 Tottenham 2: Sigurdsson strikes late to keep Rafa waiting for top-four finish

By Martin Samuel

It was still a better point for Chelsea than Hotspur. It is Chelsea who are a win away from Champions League qualification, Tottenham who are pegged outside that all-important top four, their game in hand on Arsenal now gone.
So why didn’t it feel that way? Why did this feel like a blow for Chelsea, and a point taken, and proven, for their former manager Andre Villas-Boas? Perhaps because, at 2-1 up, Chelsea should have ruthlessly put Tottenham away. They had the chance, they had the chances. They were far the superior team. And then they let it slip.
Chelsea were once resilience personified. This much we knew. Their Champions League triumph last season was built on the will of men who were down, but never out. And now those men are going, going and gone. Didier Drogba is elsewhere. John Terry and Frank Lampard are onlookers. And when the real Tottenham finally turned up at Stamford Bridge, this Chelsea who have risen in their place looked horribly vulnerable.
Every change Villas-Boas made spelt danger. By contrast, Rafael Benitez’s substitutions were ineffectual, slight. Chelsea had the best player on the field in Oscar, and this should have been his night. Instead it was the one that got away.
Tottenham are still powerless if Chelsea win once more and Arsenal defeat Wigan and Newcastle, but they will be buoyed by this. Villas-Boas paced furiously. He knew what was at stake. It would have been devilishly hard for Spurs had they lost here. Now they have a puncher’s chance.
And a puncher, too, in Footballer of the Year, Gareth Bale. This was a quiet night for him but a game is never over when he is on the field, and that will make Tottenham dangerous to the last kick of the campaign. This was the 42nd second-half goal for the club this season. No Premier League team have scored more. The most important? We shall see.
It was sweetly taken, too. Tom Huddlestone passed to Benoit Assou-Ekotto on the left and he struck a curling ball in for Emmanuel Adebayor. A volleyed back-heel flick later and the ball was at the feet of substitute Gylfi Sigurdsson. He curled his low shot past Petr Cech — and Tottenham were back in the game, back in the hunt and back in business.
Had Chelsea held on, they were almost done. At 2-1 down, Chelsea were secure and Tottenham behind Arsenal by two points with two games remaining. The gap has only closed to one point but, psychologically, it is the difference between leading by a length and a short head down the final straight. If Tottenham win at Stoke on Sunday, Arsenal will play Wigan next week from two points adrift in fifth. Game on.

Invisible football, Villas-Boas had called Chelsea’s style, and by the end he was right. As Tottenham’s purpose grew so Chelsea’s superiority faded from view, their swagger replaced by nervousness, their control by fluster. Interim manager Benitez seemed strangely slow to respond. Chelsea had been busy, busy, busy earlier. They hassled Tottenham off the ball and terrified them on it. Oscar was simply exceptional. Yet they seemed frail under pressure, when it was Tottenham who had everything to lose.

Summing up the malaise was Ramires. Midway through the second half a superb flick by Oscar set Juan Mata away and as the Tottenham defence tried frantically to rally, he squared to Ramires, who slipped and fell at the vital moment with the goal invitingly open. He stayed down for a little while, as much embarrassed as injured.

Yet he wasn’t alone in suffering a crisis of confidence. Once Spurs were level, had the game contained a late goal it seemed likelier to be scored by the men in white shirts.

Yet for the best part of an hour the contest was as suggested by the league table: a Champions League team, Chelsea, against one destined for the inferior Europa League, Tottenham. Chelsea were superior in every way, they got the early goal, were beaten against the run of play, hit back, had the best chances, the liveliest midfield, and only in defence did Tottenham excel — because they had to. Bale was anony-mous, starting on the left, subdued by Cesar Azpilicueta and isolated.

All Tottenham had in their favour in the first half was a quite wonderful goal after 26 minutes by Adebayor. Infuriatingly against the run of play from Chelsea’s perspective, but exquisite in its execution, and a deserving influence on any match.

Tottenham’s counter-attack began with Eden Hazard losing possession, the ball running loose, being regained by Ramires and lost again to Adebayor inside his own area.

He began running, purposefully, powerfully taking the ball into Chelsea’s half, on and on, while the four defenders — five including David Luiz — who Benitez likes to believe are better than Terry, beat a retreat. Nobody went to him, nobody challenged, until Adebayor neared the opposition penalty area, at which point he lifted the most delightful chip over a curiously helpless Cech.

Maybe he was simply caught flat-footed, maybe he knew resistance was futile, so perfect was Adebayor’s technique. Either way, Cech offered little more than a cursory flick of the wrist, before turning to fish the ball from its resting place.

Adebayor was responding to an early Chelsea opener, 10 minutes gone when Oscar scored his second headed goal in recent weeks, in his 89th match in a calendar year. No Premier League fatigue here, bless him. Juan Mata took a corner from the right, won by Gary Cahill, whose header was travelling wide before Oscar popped up at the far post to head it in from unmissable range.

After Adebayor equalised, order was restored by more outstanding work from Oscar and Fernando Torres. The pair combined on the right flank, the Spaniard heading inside, before feeding the ball into the path of Ramires, who needed no second invitation, hitting it low in his stride and past the despairing Hugo Lloris. Comfortable, Chelsea then lost their way.

Win on Saturday, of course, and they leave north London to duke it out for that final Champions League place. Fail, however, and The Invisibles may live to regret this loss of nerve.

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Mirror:

Chelsea 2-2 Tottenham: Arsenal the winners as their Champions League qualification rivals draw  
From Martin Lipton at Stamford Bridge

The latest late show might not be good enough.
For Spurs, the win needed to remain masters of their own destiny, a first triumph on Chelsea soil since 1990, proved elusive once again.
But Andre Villas-Boas and his men have taken the fight for the top four into the final week, Rafa Benitez and his Blues still have work to do.
And while Arsenal were the only winners at the Bridge last night, the Gunners know that one slip could mean Europe's second tier.
Since the turn of the year, time and time again, Tottenham have dug out points at the death, chiseled from the face of adversity.
Nine times they have scored in the last few minutes, goals worth 14 points.
Most of those, true, have come from the golden boots of the golden boy, Gareth Bale.
Yet on a night when the Welsh wonder was eclipsed by the new star in the Chelsea firmament, Eden Hazard, Villas-Boas found another salvation.
For much of the season, Gylfi Sigurdsson may have been regretting his decision to move to Spurs rather than Liverpool.
But when it mattered here, as Spurs saw their hopes and ambitions disappearing, it was Sigurdsson, coming off the bench, who curled home the goal that could yet be the gateway to Europe's richest prize.
Spurs did not care that Emmanuel Adebayor, saving his best performance of the entire campaign for the night when it was really required, was fractionally offside when he received from Benoit Assou-Ekotto to tee up Sigurdsson.
The finish was terrific - even if not as good as Adebayor's had been earlier - further proof of the resilience and desire Villas-Boas paid tribute to afterwards.
Villas-Boas' words of praise for his men were understandable yet the most significant substitution was neither the arrival of Sigurdsson nor Clint Dempsey, as Spurs went for broke, but the departure of Hazard.
The Belgian had been scintillating, superb, leading Spurs a merry dance, creating the tension that brought soft defensive mistakes.
Mistakes that were punished, the first coming after 10 minutes, when Scott Parker allowed Oscar to shake him aside too easily and direct home after Gary Cahill flicked on Juan Mata's corner.
Chelsea were in the ascendant, Fernando Torres' industry and energy standing out, only for a devastating counter to bring Spurs level.
Referee Mike Dean deserved huge credit for playing on after Ramires downed Parker as the African picked up the ball 15 yards inside his own half.
Adebayor ran on, first crossing half-way, then advancing to 25 yards out as Chelsea unaccountably backed off.
Even then the quality of his right-footer, bending out of Petr Cech's reach and into the top corner, was unstoppable.
Briefly, Spurs, even with Bale subdued, flittering in and out of the game, appeared more purposeful, only to suffer another hammer-blow before the interval.
Torres played Tom Huddlestone like a fiddle before sliding through, with Ramires beating the desperate charge of Michael Dawson to toe-poke beyond Hugo Lloris and into the far corner.
Either side of the interval, it could have been over and done with, as Tottenham teetered on edge, clinging on to the ropes.
Mata, fed by Hazard, smashed at Lloris, Torres failed to make proper contact from David Luiz' centre and was then beaten by Assou-Ekotto as Hazard teased across, before Ramires slipped with the goal at his mercy.
But as Villas-Boas sent on his heavy artillery, with Jermain Defoe left unused on the bench, it was the kick received by Hazard who came off suggesting a slight pull that tilted the balance.
Now Spurs had extra oomph, Chelsea starting to run in empty, the jeers that cascaded around the Bridge when Yossi Benayoun came on adding to the sense of momentum change.
Sigurdsson picked the time to strike, his seventh of the season one that might have real resonance.
Had Bale found the corner rather than Cech's hands in stoppage-time, it would have been Superman time all over again.
Tottenham, though remain alive, with the chance to put the heat on Arsenal by winning at Stoke.
Benitez has serious business at Villa Park before he can start to think about Amsterdam.
We need help now admits Villas-Boas
Tottenham boss Andre Villas-Boas admitted Spurs are now praying Chelsea and Arsenal slip up over the final two games after their Champions League destiny was taken out of their hands, writes John Cross.
After his fifth-placed side's 2-2 draw at third-place Chelsea, Villas-Boas said: "Our situation changes a bit, because destiny is not in our hands. But what we have to do is win the next fixtures and hope somebody slips up.
"We did every so well to get a point given the situation. I'm extremely pleased by the performance. The reality is we have to do our job and hope something can happen.
"There is a great example of Tottenham's determination and ambition, when you saw us pick the ball out of the back of the net at 2-2."
Spurs are a point behind Arsenal, but with hugely inferior goal difference, going into Sunday's trip to Stoke and a season-finale at home against a Sunderland side who could need a result to avoid relegation.
Chelsea boss Rafa Benitez admitted that the fixture backlog is a major danger and that he will have to rest and rotate his squad to secure Champions League football for the Blues next season.
Benitez said: "We are managing the squad quite well. The tempo today was too high. It was massive for both teams. We were working hard in each half. If we manage the players, hopefully we'll be fine."
**
Chelsea (4-2-3-1): Cech 6; Azplicueta 7, Cahill 7, Ivanovic 7, Cole 8; Ramires 7, Luiz 6; Oscar 6 (Beneyoun, 84, 5), Mata 7, Hazard 8 (Moses, 73, 6); Torres 7
Tottenham (4-2-3-1): Lloris 6; Walker 7, Dawson 6, Vertonghen 7, Assou-Ekotto 5; Huddlestone 5, Parker 5; Lennon 5 (Sigurdsson, 62, 7), Holtby 6 (Dempsey, 70, 6), Bale 5; Adebayor 7
Referee: Mike Dean
Man of the Match: Hazard - Spurs could not get near him

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Sun:

Chelsea 2 Tottenham 2
By SHAUN CUSTIS

ANDRE VILLAS-BOAS could walk tall on his return to Stamford Bridge last night.
His Spurs side shared the spoils with the club who dumped him as they battled for the Champions League places.
But AVB knew it was probably not good enough.
Before this encounter, Tottenham had their destiny in their own hands. Wins in each of their last three games meant no one could stop them finishing in the top four.
But despite Gylfi Sigurdsson’s leveller, they are now favourites to miss out behind Chelsea and Arsenal, meaning heartbreak for a second season running.
Should that happen it will spark panic about Gareth Bale’s future.
Tottenham may argue Champions League football is not essential to keep the £50million man — but that is what he wants.
If Spurs cannot provide it, the Welshman may look elsewhere.
He never got in the game last night, mainly because his team-mates did not give him the ball.
Instead it was left to Emmanuel Adebayor to produce the spark.
Adebayor is no fans’ favourite but he had a good evening, first scoring a wonder goal from 25 yards to cancel out Oscar’s opener.
And, after Ramires had put Chelsea back in front, it was the big striker’s impudent backheel, albeit from a marginally offside position, which set up sub Sigurdsson for the equaliser 10 minutes from time.
The home crowd bayed for substitute Frank Lampard to come on and get the winner.
When they got Yossi Benayoun instead they went nuts. Chants of “You don’t know what you’re doing” were aimed at Rafa Benitez.
Lamps and AVB were no pals when he was in charge but, as the midfielder stewed on the bench, you can imagine he shared the opinion of the crowd about Benitez.
And it was also another game gone in his quest to beat the Chelsea scoring record. He is one behind Bobby Tambling’s mark of 202.
If Chelsea’s outstanding player of the season, Juan Mata, had brought his shooting boots to the party, they might have had this wrapped up in 16 minutes.
He shot over from 12 yards and missed an easier chance from Cesar Azpilicueta’s cut-back. In between times, Chelsea went ahead on 10 minutes following a corner by Eden Hazard.
As the ball came into the middle, Gary Cahill managed to climb between Michael Dawson and Adebayor to head goalwards and Oscar was there to finish it off.
Good for Chelsea but poor by Tottenham, who had to ask questions of their defence.
Spurs had not created much until they levelled on 26 minutes with an Adebayor stunner.
Scott Parker won possession and Lewis Holtby played it to Adebayor.
The Togo hitman was a good 10 yards inside his own half when he started his run but nobody challenged and he kept going.
Chelsea backed off and clearly Cahill was not expecting what came next. Nor were the rest of us.
Adebayor drew back his right foot and curled home a 25-yarder over the stranded Petr Cech.
He was so excited he tried the spectacular again, stretching to connect with a long pass by Jan Vertonghen but it came off his shin and went high into the stands.
But Chelsea were back in front through Ramires six minutes before the break. The Brazilian started it himself on halfway and kept going into the area as Fernando Torres worked space on the right before releasing the perfect pass.
Ramires had got the run just right and he poked the ball past Hugo Lloris into the bottom corner.
Chelsea returned for the second half looking to kill the game off but Torres could not convert David Luiz’s cross.
Torres was also denied by some great defending from Benoit Assou-Ekotto as he was poised to head in.
And then Azpilicueta was close with a firm side-footer which just cleared the angle of post and bar.
Hazard shot over too. And after Hazard’s flick-on, Mata squared to Ramires, who fell over in the box.
Luiz was causing great amusement by continually listening in on AVB’s tactical discussions with his players by the touchline.
But it got testy as Spurs tried to find an equaliser. AVB took issue with his former player Luiz after he caught Sigurdsson and the pair had a set-to on the touchline.
Sigurdsson got his revenge with the Spurs leveller. Assou-Ekotto fed Adebayor, who was just offside.
But the linesman’s flag stayed down and Adebayor’s backheel was smashed home by the Icelander.

DREAM TEAM 
SUN STAR MAN — OSCAR (CHELSEA) 
CHELSEA: Cech 6, Azpilicueta 6, Cahill 6, Ivanovic 6, Cole 6, Ramires 7, Luiz 7, Oscar 8, Mata 8, Hazard 7, Torres 7. Subs: Moses (Hazard 73) 6, Benayoun (Oscar 84) 5. Not used: Turnbull, Terry, Lampard, Ake, Ba. Booked: Ramires.
TOTTENHAM: Lloris 6, Walker 6, Dawson 7, Vertonghen 6, Assou-Ekotto 6, Parker 6, Huddlestone 6, Lennon 5, Bale 6, Holtby 6, Adebayor 8. Subs: Sigurdsson (Lennon 62) 6, Dempsey (Holtby 70) 6. Not used: Friedel, Naughton, Caulker, Carroll, Defoe. Booked: Vertonghen, Bale.
REF: M Dean 7

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Chelsea 2 - Tottenham 2: Gylfi Sigurdsson late show keeps AVB in the hunt
GYLFI SIGURDSSON’S late goal kept the race for the Champions League wide open last night as Andre Villas-Boas gained some sweet revenge at Stamford Bridge.
Tony Banks

The Icelander fired home just 10 minutes from time in a pulsating game at the Bridge, just when it looked like Chelsea had secured their place in the top four.
Now the battle will go into the last week of the season, with Chelsea still in the driving seat but needing a win from one of their last two games.
Oscar had given Chelsea the lead only for Emmanuel Adebayor to level, but Ramires looked to have booked Chelsea’s ferry to the Continent’s blue riband event until Sigurdsson’s strike. For Villas-Boas, sacked by Chelsea just 14 months ago, it was a satisfying moment.
Rafa Benitez, fresh from Chelsea’s 1-0 win at Manchester United on Sunday, made three changes to his side.
Out went Frank Lampard, Victor Moses and Demba Ba while skipper John Terry had his third game in a row sitting on the bench. Villas-Boas had nine months in charge at Stamford Bridge before being removed with brutal speed last March by Roman Abramovich when it looked like his team was faltering in its chase for a Champions League place.
Ironically, on his first trip back, that was exactly what he was battling for again last night.
Events around Old Trafford held the attention of the world during the day yesterday. But as evening fell, some of the focus fell on West London, for this was a game of huge importance.
Chelsea went into it with a three-point lead over their North London rivals, so nothing less than victory last night would be good enough for Villas-Boas.
For Chelsea, victory meant a top-four place was virtually guaranteed. It was Chelsea’s 65th game of this gruelling campaign, Tottenham’s 52nd. And there is still another 10 days to go. Tottenham had not tasted victory at Stamford Bridge before last night since 1990, when Gary Lineker scored. And it was Chelsea, breaking swiftly, who almost struck first as Fernando Torres set up Juan Mata for a volley that dipped over.
And inside 11 minutes, they were ahead. Mata swung in a typically accurate corner, Gary Cahill flicked it on, and there was Oscar to stoop and nod in from a yard out.
Lewis Holtby cut a low shot wide as Spurs tried to respond, but Mata then drilled another shot just over from Cesar Azpilicueta’s cross.
But this was never going to be one that Villa-Boas surrendered easily.
Now the battle will go into the last week of the season, with Chelsea still in the driving seat
Another Chelsea corner was cleared as they committed too many forward and Spurs broke swiftly. Scott Parker found Holtby, and he played in Adebayor.
The Togo star raced away and as Chelsea backed off, he looked up and floated a quite glorious chip over keeper Petr Cech and into the far top corner.
Chelsea were momentarily stunned, as Adebayor again then volleyed over. But Spurs were simply unable to hold on to what they had. Ramires fired over, but then when Torres cleverly played him in, the Brazilian then cut through their once-again scattered back line and fired into the far corner. It was breathless stuff.
Chelsea did not let up after the interval, as David Luiz crossed low and Torres – playing without his mask for the first time since breaking his nose – scuffed his shot when he might have done better. Then Azpilicueta curled a cross shot just over the angle. It was though, an incredibly open game and while the margin stood at only one goal, there was always the feeling that Spurs might find their range.
But with 20-goal Gareth Bale strangely quiet, Tottenham were disappointingly creating little and they were finding it increasingly difficult to cope with the electrifying runs of Eden Hazard.
Luiz was having a running argument with a fuming Villas-Boas all the way through the second half, after yet another stray elbow felled Sigurdsson near the touchline. But then they did find that range. Benoit Assou-Ekotto’s pass found Adebayor, who brilliantly laid it off to Sigurdsson

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