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Jose Mourinho said that he “did not remember” the suspended Diego Costa as Didier Drogba inspired Chelsea to a 3-0 win over Tottenham Hotspur at Stamford Bridge.
Drogba produced his best performance since returning to Chelsea, creating the first goal and scoring the second, and Mourinho hailed the “remarkable” contribution of a 36-year-old who is now looking as sharp as he has done for years.
“Did you remember Diego Costa today?, I didn’t” Mourinho said in his post-match press conference.
“We don't have a player? We don't cry about it. You give confidence to the others and the others respond in the best way.”
Mourinho was delighted with Drogba’s response to selection and predicted that he would stay at the club in a non-playing capacity at the end of his contract.
Show all 22 1 /22Chelsea vs Tottenham Hotspur player ratings Chelsea vs Tottenham Hotspur player ratings Thibaut Courtois Faced just one shot on target but was beaten all ends up by Kane's early header - thankfully for the Chelsea keeper the ball rebounded off the crossbar. Looked solid enough.6
Chelsea vs Tottenham Hotspur player ratings Branislav Ivanovic As good a right back as can be found in the Premier League, Ivanovic was never tested defensively by Lamela and allowed as much room as he wanted to burst forward. 7
Chelsea vs Tottenham Hotspur player ratings Gary Cahill Substituted at half-time, suffered a clash of heads with Jan Vertonghen early on that seemed to affect him - lost the ball in a dangerous position to Harry Kane but breathed a sigh of relief when the Spurs striker fired wide with the score still 0-0. 5
Chelsea vs Tottenham Hotspur player ratings John Terry A fine performance from the Chelsea skipper, won all of his personal battles and while Cahill and later Zouma struggled to contain Kane, Terry never had that problem. 8
Chelsea vs Tottenham Hotspur player ratings Cesar Azpilicueta The best left-back in England is really a right back. The Spaniard was only bested once by Lennon, and provided a smart assist for Remy's third goal. 7
Chelsea vs Tottenham Hotspur player ratings Willian Didn't stop running for 90 minutes, the Brazilian may have had a goal of his own but for poor shooting when in good positions. He didn't give Ben Davies a moment's peace. 7
Chelsea vs Tottenham Hotspur player ratings Cesc Fabregas Another beautifully measured performance from the Spanish maestro, bar the opening 10 minutes when Spurs started like a freight train Fabregas was never not in control of this game. 8
Chelsea vs Tottenham Hotspur player ratings Nemanja Matic The giant Serbian was a man playing against the boys of the Spurs midfield. Supremely strong in and out of possession, alongside Fabregas he has formed the best midfield partnership in the Premier League and the real source of Chelsea's dominance this season. 8
Chelsea vs Tottenham Hotspur player ratings Eden Hazard Tortured Vlad Chiriches every time he touched the ball. When Spurs were on top in the opening stages the Belgian was the only Chelsea player taking the fight to the away side. Scored a brilliant goal and continued to relieve pressure with his brilliant dribbling skills. 8
Chelsea vs Tottenham Hotspur player ratings Oscar Seems to be growing into his role as Chelsea's No 10 every week, Mason and Bentaleb couldn't get near the Brazilian. Perfect pass for the Drogba goal and showed an impressive willingness to work, as ever, throughout the 90 minutes. 8
Chelsea vs Tottenham Hotspur player ratings Didier Drogba Not always in the game but it didn't matter, the veteran striker proved his status as a match winner. He made two crucial touches, holding off Fazio to play a perfect one-two with Hazard for the first goal and finishing his own chance to put the Blues two up. 8
Chelsea vs Tottenham Hotspur player ratings Hugo Lloris Horrendous mistake that arguably cost Spurs the game - the last thing the away side needed was to concede so soon after the first. Apart from that Lloris didn't put a foot wrong but on such small details are games decided. 4
Chelsea vs Tottenham Hotspur player ratings Vlad Chriches The Romanian, plainly not a right-back, will have nightmares about Eden Hazard. Never got to grips with the winger and was left completely flat-footed for the opening goal. 4
Chelsea vs Tottenham Hotspur player ratings Federico Fazio For most of the game stood up well to the physical challenge of Drogba, winning his fair share of battles with the Ivorian. But crucially allowed Drogba to lay the ball into Hazard's path for the first goal. 6
Chelsea vs Tottenham Hotspur player ratings Jan Vertonghen As above, Vertonghen was good for large swathes of the game but guilty of one crucial error - this time allowing Remy to first run past and then turn inside him. 5
Chelsea vs Tottenham Hotspur player ratings Ben Davies Offered very little going forward and defensively was overwhelmed by the dual threat of Ivanovic and Willian. Given no protection by Lamela, however. 6
Chelsea vs Tottenham Hotspur player ratings Aaron Lennon Started brightly, producing a great cross for the Kane header that cannoned back off the cross bar, but apart from that one moment failed to get into the game. 5
Chelsea vs Tottenham Hotspur player ratings Ryan Mason Tried his very best and had the legs of Fabregas and Matic in the early going but, despite some neat touches, does not possess anywhere close to the quality of his Chelsea counterpart and was eventually overran. 6
Chelsea vs Tottenham Hotspur player ratings Nabil Bentaleb Showed some lovely touches and one of the better performers. The Algerian, 20, will be a huge part of Tottenham's future but, as stated above, it was men against boys in midfield. 6
Chelsea vs Tottenham Hotspur player ratings Christian Eriksen The Dane clearly possesses supreme talent and skill but he failed to show it often enough. Well marshalled by Matic, Eriksen never made a mark on the game. 5
Chelsea vs Tottenham Hotspur player ratings Erik Lamela Utterly anonymous as an attacking player and a liability in defence, failing to offer Ben Davies any protection from the rampaging Ivanovic. May have been a mistake to start the Argentine. 3
Chelsea vs Tottenham Hotspur player ratings Harry Kane By far Tottenham's best player, Kane showed the same energy and confidence on the ball that has made him a focal point for this team. However, while his header was unlucky, Kane should have scored after nicking the ball from Cahill. 7
“First of all he is a team player,” Mourinho said. “After that, he's one of these old-days mentality: not selfish, not vain, a humble guy who plays and fights for the team. Fantastic. The important thing is he is here and will finish his career with Chelsea. It looks, for me, that he's going to stay doing other things when he finishes his career.”
Whether or not this is Drogba’s last season as a player, Mourinho was not sure. “I don't know,” he said. “It must be his decision. He came here to stay, I want him to stay, the club want him to stay. It will be his decision when he decides when he must stop as a player.”
Mourinho was delighted with a win that was comfortable in the end, despite Spurs being the better side in the opening 20 minutes. “We played against a very good team and they showed that during some periods in the game,” Mourinho said. “They started better than us and should have scored before us, but after our first goal our team became more stable and confident and we controlled the game. I'm really happy with the points, performance and spirit of the players.”
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