Chelsea’s Cesar Azpilicueta wary of Tottenham’s counter-attacking threat

Cesar Azpilicueta has warned Chelsea that they must contain Tottenham’s threat on the counter-attack during Wednesday’s top-four showdown at Stamford Bridge.

Spurs head into the match knowing that victory will hoist them up into fourth place in the Premier League table and level on points with Chelsea with two games left to play.

Chelsea, however, can all but secure their place in next season’s Champions League with victory on Wednesday.

And the 23-year-old Azpilicueta, who joined Chelsea from Marseille last summer, needs no reminding of the threat posed by the north Londoners.

“Tottenham have some good players with quality but they are good as a team as well,” Azpilicueta told Chelsea’s website.

“They defend well and then do quick counter-attacks with players with pace. This is the action we need to stop but also play our game that we would like to play. We would like to play the ball, to go forward and try to play at our best.”

He added: “Always against Tottenham it is a special game. It is always a tough game against a good team and we are both fighting for the Champions League so it is true that this game is very special.”