Chelsea FC make the short trip to St Mary’s on Saturday as they take on Southampton in a tricky Premier League clash.
Chelsea travel down the south coast to face Southampton as the Premier League resumes this Saturday after last week’s FA Cup fifth round. The home side have managed to sneak into 6th place and are chasing a European qualification spot while the Blues are hoping for three more points as Guus Hiddink aims to drag his side up the table.
The last time these two sides met was in October, when Southampton shocked Chelsea, winning 3-1 at Stamford Bridge. Willian bagged Chelsea’s goal that day, but Saints winger Sadio Mane ran the show and was named Man of the Match. The away side will be hoping to keep him quiet this time round.
If results go the way Southampton want, they could move up to fifth in the table, leapfrogging Manchester United while leaving Chelsea in 12th place. However if the Blues get a win, they could move up to 10th ahead of Stoke and Everton, depending on their results.
Team News
Chelsea will be without captain John Terry, who remains out with a hamstring injury, but the veteran defender has not been ruled out of Tuesday’s game against Norwich at Carrow Road. His central defensive partner Kurt Zouma is still out with a knee injury, as is Falcao who is still recovering from a thigh injury. Alexandre Pato is still working up to full fitness and will consequently not feature.
After a solid display against Manchester City in the FA Cup, it’s likely that Baba Rahman will keep his place, with stand-in captain Branislav Ivanovic slotting in next to Gary Cahill at the centre of Chelsea’s makeshift defence. John Obi Mikel may keep his place as Hiddink seems to prefer him to Nemanja Matic in midfield. Diego Costa will start up front, with the trio of Pedro, Willian and Eden Hazard likely featuring behind him.
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Southampton will be without defensive midfielder Victor Wanyama, who is serving the second game of his five-match ban. He picked up a straight red card against Swansea two weeks ago, his third of the season, which has led to a long stint on the sideline. Incredibly, all three of his red cards have come since November.
The hosts are also likely to be without Florin Gardos and fan favourite Jay Rodriguez, who returned to training this week, but will need more time to recover from long term injuries.
Stats
Southampton are unbeaten in their last three league meetings with Chelsea, winning one and drawing two.
The Blues have only lost one of their seven Premier League trips to St Mary’s, winning four and drawing two.
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Writer’s Prediction
Southampton 1-2 Chelsea.