This Sunday Chelsea return to League football after last weekends disappointing performance and result to Spurs, with the blues conceding three goals and lacking any sort of desire and almost seemed lack lust, sparking rumours that Maurizio Sarri had a one on one meeting with each of the players to try and understand what exactly happened. However, Chelsea did taste victory on Thursday with a simple and impressive victory in the Europa League, Chelsea prospect Callum Hudson-Odoi scoring his first Chelsea goal, Giroud with a brace and Morata securing the 3 points with a late goal. But only one of the starters against Tottenham was in the starting lineup against PAOK, which was Kepa.
Match Facts
- Chelsea were the only unbeaten team in Europe’s top 5 leagues prior to last Saturday, which saw the Blues put in a dreadful display, losing to London rivals Tottenham.
- Olivier Giroud has 5 goals in his last 5 games for club and country.
- Claudio Ranieri will be looking for his second consecutive victory after being appointed Fulham’s manager just a matter of weeks ago.
- Both clubs have no reported injuries for the fixture.
- Fulham’s last victory against Chelsea came in 2006.
Predicted Chelsea starting 11
GK: Kepa – Debatably at fault for a couple of Tottenham’s goals last weekend. However, he made some good saves to keep the scoreline where it was. The Spaniard has had an incredible start to life at Chelsea.
RB: Azpi – Mr Consistent, so commonly called. The Spaniard will go down as a Chelsea great, this season he hasn’t been at his best, however, but let’s hope this changes soon, as all Chelsea fans know exactly what he’s capable of.
CB: Rudiger – Chelsea’s rock at the back. The German international has been nothing short of incredible since his transfer from Roma, and in my opinion has been the blues best defender this season.
CB: David Luiz – I think its fair to say that Saturday was a day to forget for the Brazilian. However, Sarri has a history of stubbornness when it comes to
LB: Marcos Alonso – The Spaniard was reasonably unknown before making his move to Stamford Bridge, with Cesc Fabregas even admitting he was unaware who Alonso was when he first signed. However, he has established himself among the best full-backs in world football in recent years.
CM: Jorginho – One of the first names on the team-sheet for Sarri, who is known for basing his teams around the Italian pass master.
CM: N’Golo Kante – Quite a controversial week for the French player of the year, signing a new contract and then Sarri talking to the media about preferred Kante’s role in a way that has sparked a media outburst in support for Kante and even Gary Lineker has tweeted about the situation.
CM: Kovacic – This is a tough call, but logically you have to think with Barkley and Loftus-Cheek starting on Thursday that this implies Kovacic will be starting on Sunday.
LW: Eden Hazard – Since picking up a minor back injury against Man United Hazard’s form hasn’t been quite as blistering as prior. However, as all Chelsea fans are aware, he’s the main man and when he’s fit he’ll play, simple.
ST: Giroud – The Frenchman is in astonishing form, scoring 5 goals from his last 5 appearances for club and country. He was also brought off early on Thursday after picking up a brace, which might insinuate Sarri potentially resting him.
RW: Willian – The Brazilian has had a decent campaign so far, playing well enough to keep Pedro out the side. However, with two strong options in this position, anything could happen
Fulham’s predicted starting 11
Rico
Christie
Odoi
Mawson
Le Marchand
Chambers
Seri
Schürrle
Cairney
R Sessegnon
Mitrovic
Score Prediction
Chelsea 4-1 Fulham
Although Chelsea looked terrible last weekend with a shocking performance which led to a deserved defeat, they will surely be looking to bounce back to warn rivals that they are still in the title race with Liverpool and Man City still unbeaten, and I believe the firepower and constant pressure will prove to much to handle for Ranieri’s men.
