Chelsea FC head to The Hawthorns to take on West Bromwich Albion in a match that is meaningless for both sides. The Blues have won the title and West Brom is safe from the drop (surprise, surprise) under the tutelage of Tony Pulis. Pulis has never been relegated as a manager in the Premier League despite managing some very relegation-worthy sides in his career.
Last season he lead Crystal Palace to safety and managed to ruin both Chelsea FC’s and Liverpool’s title push so hopefully Manchester City sent him a fruit basket for his contributions. Unfortunately Palace thought they could do better than Tony and let him go prior to the 2014/15 season but both parties seem to have done well after their breakup.
This year he took over a struggling West Brom side that was very much in the danger zone and lead them to the 40 point safety zone and a comfortable 13th place in the table. They may drop a few places after their next two matches but they are safe from relegation and that is all that matters.
Chelsea FC continue their post title tour with a trip to the Hawthorns and we should see a vastly different lineup. Jose Mourinho mentioned last week that he would be giving Izzy Brown his Chelsea FC debut against the side where he made his Premier League debut when he was just 16 years old. Nathan Ake is supposedly in line for a start as well but it is unclear which of the other youth will be given a chance.
Mourinho certainly wants to give the lads a chance during the last few matches but not at the expense of possibly losing a match. It will also be interesting to see if he finally gives Eden Hazard a rest or if Diego Costa makes another appearance to try and score a few goals to nip the Golden Boot away from Sergio Aguero. Maybe Hazard will even let him take a penalty if it comes to that.
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Chelsea FC Team News: Ramires, Kurt Zouma, and Oscar have all had their seasons ended by Mourinho for various ailments and injuries and that is just fine. Zouma is the only true youngster of the group but we already know what he is capable of.
Expect John Terry to continue his tradition of playing every minute of Chelsea’s Premier League campaign and he will likely be partnered up with Gary Cahill in defense. Would be nice to see Petr Cech get another start but Mourinho may reserve the sentimental lineup decisions for the finale against Sunderland.
West Brom Team News: There are no major injuries to report for West Brom save for Ben Foster who tore his ACL a few months ago. The Baggies have been a bit of a bogey team in recent seasons for the Blues but this should be a relaxed affair as both teams go through the motions to get to the summer holiday.
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