Gary Neville predicted where Chelsea will finish in the Premier League after they beat London rivals Tottenham.
Joao Pedro’s first-half goal was enough to earn Chelsea a narrow but deserved win over Spurs in north London on Saturday.
While only one goal separated the sides, Chelsea were by far the more superior team and had a number of chances to put the game to bed.
Tottenham, meanwhile, created very little as they slipped to a 12th defeat from their past 19 home games in the Premier League.
Despite a dismal performance – which was greeted by boos at the full-time whistle – Tottenham are still above Chelsea in the Premier League table.
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But Neville fully expects Chelsea to finish above Spurs and says Enzo Maresca is blessed with a ‘better squad’ and ‘better players’ than Thomas Frank.
Asked if he believes Chelsea are on track for a top-four finish, Neville told NBC Sports: ‘The problem is the Premier League is so inconsistent this year.
‘When you look at the league table, every team is so inconsistent except for Arsenal. The fact of the matter is Spurs are still in front of Chelsea.
‘The Chelsea fans were celebrating in that far corner with the Chelsea players and the Tottenham players had left the pitch devastated after being booed off but it’s them who’s in front in the table.
‘It’s been a bit of a mad start to the league this year. I think Chelsea will have enough to get into that top-four because I think it’s going to be a bit crazy all season.’
Neville rates Chelsea above Tottenham and believes the Blues have a ‘far better squad’ than their London rivals.
‘I do, yeah,’ Neville added. ‘Chelsea have a better squad and better players.
‘Look at Tottenham’s players… Randal Kolo Muani, Xavi Simons and a few others haven’t settled in yet and don’t look like they’re at the level the Chelsea players are.
‘Chelsea have a far better squad than Tottenham and they should have because they’ve spent far more money.’
Stamford Bridge manager Maresca was pleased with his team’s performance at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
‘It was a good performance for sure,’ he said. ‘Against this team, in this stadium, at this moment when they look very good, we needed a performance like this.
‘I think you have to be brave on and off the ball. Off the ball we were very good but then we created chances with the ball too.
‘In England, a 1-0 is not finished and anything can happen. Today we can score one or two more goals, then it would’ve been much more relaxed, but we are very happy with the 1-0 and a clean sheet.
‘We are very happy for ourselves and for the fans because it is a big derby.’
Chelsea return to Premier League action against managerless Wolves next weekend, while Tottenham will look to improve their home record against Manchester United.
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