Chelsea received bad news ahead of their Premier League match against Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday when Referee Stuart Attwell was named to officiate the game in North London.
The VAR for the EPL match between Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspurs will be handled by Paul Tierney. Chelsea have not won a game in the last four matches officiated by Referee Stuart Attwell, as they have recently registered four consecutive draws against Man United (1-1) in October 2022, Leicester City (1-1) in May 2022, Liverpool (0-0) in February 2022, and Fulham (0-0) in February 2023, and are therefore likely to drop points.
Chelsea have lost four of their 19 matches officiated by Attwell and drawn eleven, while Tottenham have won 12 of their 19 matches.
The Blues will most likely struggle. Chelsea’s medical staff advised Graham Potter that starting Reece James, Thiago Silva, Kai Havertz, Raheem Sterling, and Mykhailo Mudryk against Southampton would put them at risk of serious injury.
Chelsea’s hierarchy wants to give Potter more time and support him because he took the job mid-season, which was a risk for the club, and the club needs at least one preseason.
The decision to leave Chelsea forward Aubameyang out of the Champions League squad and not select him for the last three league games was made in collaboration with the Chelsea board.