You Bet | All signs point to Chelsea in League Cup final with Tottenham
Table toppers will need to muzzle Harry Kane, but should claim season's first silverware
The League Cup is the least valued prize for the top English clubs, but there is no doubting the quality of tomorrow's final between Chelsea and Tottenham or the desire of both managers to make sure they lift the trophy.
The early rounds are marked by squad rotation but, once the big clubs get a sniff of Wembley, the focus becomes more serious
The early rounds are marked by squad rotation but, once the big clubs get a sniff of Wembley, the focus becomes more serious.
For both Jose Mourinho and Mauricio Pochettino, the final is a chance to cement this season's progressive form by putting a trophy in the cabinet. That always helps to boost the confidence of players and fans alike, not least in trusting the ability of their manager.
The high stakes should produce an enthralling contest. It will be exciting too, if Tottenham can raise themselves to the heights of their 5-3 home win over Chelsea on New Year's Day, although the memory of that triumph has to be tempered by their 3-0 defeat in the away league fixture only four weeks earlier.
Mourinho must be worried by Harry Kane, who destroyed Chelsea in the New Year's Day match. Kane scored twice, won a penalty and set up another goal for Nacer Chadli, turning the match on its head after Chelsea had taken an early lead.
Mourinho claimed afterwards Chelsea should have had a penalty just before Tottenham's equaliser and that the match would have been dead if his team had gone 2-0 up, and perhaps he was right, but after that they were unable to cope with Kane's power and directness.
