5 assistant coaches stepped out of the shadows. Hansi Flick, who previously worked as Niko Kovač's assistant at Bayern Munich, faced his old boss for the first time as a head coach when Borussia Dortmund met Barcelona in the UEFA Champions League quarter-finals. bundesliga.com looks at other assistants who have moved out of the spotlight to become head coaches themselves... Hansi Flick Flick took the uncommon step of becoming an assistant after previously holding the top post, albeit with then lower-league club Hoffenheim, before becoming Giovanni Trappatoni's right-hand man at Red Bull Salzburg. However, it was with Joachim Löw that he created his first successful collaboration, when the two joined forces with the German national team. They led the country to the final of UEFA Euro 2008, the semi-finals four years later, and the last four of the 2010 FIFA World Cup before winning the title in Brazil in 2014. Löw later praised his second-in-command, adding, "Hansi h...
Enzo Maresca's team was under pressure after limping into the international break playing football that had lost its appeal to home fans, but they mainly outperformed a dismal Spurs team that failed to capitalise on the rising anger surrounding the home side.
As when these clubs met in north London last season, VAR played an important part, ruling out goals from Moises Caicedo and Pape Sarr after halftime, but Chelsea deserved the points as their Champions League campaign resumed.
They had started with significantly more zest than in previous lackluster performances. Nicolas Jackson's return to the team was denied one-on-one by goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario in the first minute, followed by Micky van de Ven's errant clearance ricocheting off him and against the post, before Malo Gusto rifled Marc Cucurella's cross into the side netting moments later.
Destiny Udogie almost turned Cole Palmer's cross beyond his own goalkeeper under pressure from Fernandez, as Spurs appeared to improvise defensively in the early stages.
Caicedo requiring on-field treatment for a hamstring issue was troubling for Maresca, especially as Romeo Lavia had suffered a setback in his injury rehabilitation. The head coach did not need to be concerned, as Caicedo returned to deliver a superb first-half performance of strength and poise, suffocating Spurs' little forward presence.
After 37 minutes, Son Heung-min found space in the box and forced a one-handed save from Robert Sanchez, giving the visitors hope. Levi Colwill then cleared sloppily, but James Maddison failed to capitalize and was easily shrugged off the ball.
Jadon Sancho had been active on the left, but home fans scolded him for failing to shoot when in prime position. He finally granted them their dream late in the first half, shooting low at goal from an angle off Djed Spence and prompting a superb flying save from Vicario.
Tottenham were at responsible for Chelsea's winning goal five minutes into the second half. After Sancho was given space inside the box to twirl on the ball, assess possibilities, and lay it off, Udogie did little more than stand and watch as Fernandez drifted across him to meet Palmer's cross and nudge his team in front with the simplest header.
Caicedo then blasted the ball into the bottom corner, only to be rejected by a lengthy VAR review that determined Colwill had drifted offside by an almost imperceptible margin.
Spurs were subsequently denied by a pitchside review when Sarr appeared to have scored a magnificent equaliser from long range, with the Spurs substitute catching Caicedo on the knee in reclaiming the ball and receiving a yellow card.
Sanchez kept Son out for the second time after a Spurs counter in the final minute of the 90, followed by 12 extra minutes in which Ange Postecoglou's side failed to put Chelsea under pressure to challenge their lead.
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