Tottenham have been told to trash talk and hit Romelu Lukaku with “everything” in a bid to gain an edge of the striker when they face Chelsea on Sunday.
The Blues are unbeaten after four rounds of the Premier League, but Spurs suffered their first defeat of season against Crystal Palace.
Thomas Tuchel received a major boost from Chelsea with the club’s record purchase of Lukaku during the summer transfer window.
The move has been a huge success, with the Belgian scoring four goals each in four games since his return to Stamford Bridge.
Nuno Espirito Santo now has the task of coming up with a plan to stop one of the league’s best strikers.
Although it will be difficult for the Spurs boss, he has been offered some advice from an unlikely source.
Martin Keown, Arsenal’s icon of defense, is the one who gave the plan to stop Lukaku. He told Spurs to attack the striker right from the start on Sunday evening.
“When you’re playing against him, every single ball is a contest,” Keown told talkSPORT.
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“I don’t want him to hold on to me to feel me, I wouldn’t want to get too tight but I’m going to hit him. Come two or three yards back, and when I hit him, I’m going to hit him with everything.
“I’m going to be in his ear as well, I’ve got to tell him he’s rubbish, it’s all hype, you’re playing against me today, you’re not going to get that kind of space.”
Keown also warned Tottenham’s defence that they will need to put in one of their best performances of the season to prevent the Belgian from scoring.
“You can’t let him build into the game and then when it comes, you’re going to [need] to have the game of the season by the way, physically you’re going to have to be up for it,” He stated.
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“He is fantastic in the air, we see the goal he scored in midweek, he’s got everything to his game and he is super confident so you’ve got to make him feel this is different today.
“I’m a little bit different to the rest and I am going to make it tough for you.”