Chelsea, Spurs coaches involved in heated incident during draw

Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur battled to a 2-2 draw in the second match of the 2022-23 Premier League season on Sunday and tensions on the sideline ran hot.

Thomas Tuchel and Antonio Conte got into a skirmish and were sent off following the final whistle of the draw. Spurs striker Harry Kane tied the match in the sixth minute of stoppage time. As the two coaches met, Tuchel appeared to not relinquish the grip and intimated that Conte look in his eyes.

Pushing and shoving ensued and both were shown red cards.

“I thought that when we shake hands we look into each other’s eyes, but he had other opinions,” Tuchel said after the match, via NBC Sports. “It was not necessary but a lot of things weren’t necessary. Another bad decision from the ref.”

Conte refused to talk about the heated incident between him and Tuchel.

The last-minute clash was set up by antics from both sides during the match.

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“In my opinion it is better to talk about the game. It was exciting, difficult for both teams, but I know we want to try and be competitive. Chelsea showed how good they are, but maybe compared to last season we did a better job,” Conte said, via The Mirror.

“I repeat I don’t want to comment on the situation as it is not the most important thing then it’s a problem between me and him. Speak about the game and not this situation, we are here to speak about football.”

Conte celebrated Spurs’ first game-tying goal by Pierre-Emile Højbjerg in the 68th minute by barging into the chest of Tuchel, sparking a melee among the two sets of coaching staff. After Reese James put Chelsea back up in the 77th. Tuchel sprinted down the line past Conte to celebrate with his club.

Kane’s equalizer came in the sixth of seven additional minutes added to the match.

Both teams are up to four points in their first two matches of the regular season.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.