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| Chelsea can set their final leg of the league season on fire with a great result against Burnley at the Stamford Bridge Stadium on Saturday. (Photo credit: GOAL) |
Welcome back from such an erratic international break. We enjoyed some top games, but players’ antics of pulling out due to unfounded injuries wouldn’t go away so quickly.
Back to their misery, inconsistencies, and surprise elements, Chelsea and Burnley both have the opportunity to prove they’re better than where they are on the table, which wouldn’t change much in the context of achievements for the Blues, but steering clear of the drop zone would excite Burnley.
The Clarets head to Stamford Bridge on the back of two good results: a draw against the Hammers away from home and a strong 2-1 win over Brentford at Turf Moor. An unlikely win over Chelsea could well set them on their way out of the relegation zone, but beyond that, it would skyrocket their confidence.
Chelsea has consistently moved around 10th and 12th on the log, which is embarrassing given the amount of money they have spent in the last three transfer windows. A win on Saturday still doesn’t move them higher than eighth, at least until others play. This says a lot about their season.
Chelsea’s injury situation isn’t getting better, and while they have some players back, the news of Romeo Lavia being ruled out completely this season with a recurrence of his injury is a big blow considering he only played 32 minutes of league football this season.
Burnley has beaten Chelsea at Stamford Bridge before, but they must do it again to show they deserve to be here. The Premier League is proving too difficult for the new boys, and they have suffered some harsh results recently. Is it time for them to review their style of play?
Burnley can’t call on Datro Fofana on Saturday as he cannot play against his parent club; you’ll expect them to hand Lyle Foster a start alongside Wilson Odobert. They must defend together and watch their spaces to stop Chelsea from hurting them.
For the hosts, they will once again unleash Senegalese striker Nicolas Jackson. His pace will trouble the Clarets, but his finishing needs some help. Cole Palmer will be there to do what he knows how to do best. Can Burnley stop him?