'As we say in Portugal, they brought the bus and they left the bus in front of the goal.'

Jose Mourinho

When the two best defensive records in the Premier League go head-to-head, albeit after only five games of the season, perhaps there should be an air of inevitability about a 0-0 draw. That, however, would only be telling half of the story when it comes to this one-sided encounter between Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur.

Chelsea should have gone into this game with our 100 per cent Premier League record intact; a 0-0 draw against Aston Villa the previous week saw the Blues refused a stonewall penalty and, to add further insult, Didier Drogba was booked for simulation by referee Rob Styles.

‘With such keen eyes he should be working in surveillance for MI5,’ wrote Martin Samuel in the News of the World. ‘The Six Million Dollar Man would have been envious of his powers.’

At least referee Styles, having viewed the incident again, had the good grace to concede his error in his report for the game, which meant the yellow card was rescinded.