Tottenham versus Chelsea right to be deemed ‘high-risk’
By Zac Wassink
Sunday’s Tottenham Hotspur versus Chelsea match at Wembley Stadium has been deemed a “high-risk” event, and all should be understanding why that’s the case.
It’s only August 17, as of the typing of this sentence, and the 2017-18 season is already unconventional and, in some ways, uncomfortable for Tottenham Hotspur and supporters of the club. White Hart Lane is gone, and in its place will be a world-class arena that will be the envy of English football. Tottenham will open the home portion of the current campaign at Wembley Stadium, which will serve as the club’s temporary residence until the new football/American football venue is completed next summer.
Spurs won’t be able to ease into life at Wembley, as they will play hosts to defending Premier League champions Chelsea on Sunday. Any Tottenham versus Chelsea match would, on its own, be a massive fixture. The two are London rivals, and the clubs also feature a pair of the most entertaining lineups in English football at the moment.
A different sort of controversy hovers over the August 20 showdown. As explained by Matt Hughes of The Times, roughly 20,000 seats could be left empty for Sunday’s contest “because of restrictions imposed by Brent council and Metropolitan Police.” Per The Times, nearly 70,000 tickets have already been sold as of Thursday, but Spurs have been prevented from putting remaining tickets up for sale to the public. Only supporters who registered on Tottenham’s official website before July 1 may purchase seats ahead of Sunday’s clash.
As has been pointed out by multiple observers, Tottenham notched sellouts for Champions League fixtures played at Wembley last season. Samuel Lovett of the Independent explained why this situation is different:
"The “restricted general sale” limitation is standard practice for fixtures that are deemed high-risk events, as is the case with a high-profile London derby between rivals Chelsea and Tottenham.Tickets for most Premier League matches are rarely released on general sale due the large numbers of season ticket-holders and members at each club, but Tottenham’s temporary move to Wembley has opened up certain matches to casual supporters."
Anybody even pretending to make this a bigger deal than it actually is should step back and examine the big picture. It’s understandable all involved, from the Metropolitan Police to the London Ambulance Service to the London Fire Brigade to the clubs, want to avoid any incidents that could possibly generate negative headlines. After all, it was only this past May when Tottenham had to respond to security concerns expressed following the North London Derby:
The rivalry between Tottenham and Chelsea has been particularly chippy the last couple of seasons. On May 2, 2016, the two squads nearly brawled on the pitch as the Blues ended Spurs’ title hopes during a 2-2 draw at Stamford Bridge. Tottenham and Chelsea played a trio of emotional matches last season, including an entertaining FA Cup semifinal at Wembley won by Chelsea.
There are obvious benefits to opening ticket sales for Sunday’s game to the general public. If nothing else, the match could present plenty of two-way back-and-forth football. Considering all aspects of the game, environment and history included, the risks just aren’t worth any rewards that would come from selling up to 20,000 additional tickets.
Besides, a crowd of 70,000 is still enormous for a Premier League game, and it’s nearly double the capacity of the old Lane. Concerns about atmosphere will likely be alleviated following the first kick of the match. Both squads and both sets of supporters should be up for what is, to date, the biggest fixture of the league season.
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Tottenham will deal with a fair share of annoying inconveniences throughout a campaign away from home, and ticket restrictions won’t even top the list of the worst of them by the time May rolls around. The hope is that this matter dissolves into a non-story come Sunday.x