Chelsea take the show to Burnley for another day, another parked bus. How will the Blues get by against Sean Dyche’s usual stew?
Chelsea may not have Eden Hazard at Turf Moor, which means Alvaro Morata will have to break through Burnley’s quintessentially English defence. Hope springs eternal amongst our writers.
Scott Brant: Burnley 0 – 2 Chelsea. Same score as the Europa League prediction. I might predict a 2-0 victory until it comes out, start treating this like a lottery instead of going with what I think will happen because that clearly isn’t working. With the possibility of no Eden Hazard or at best a limited one, I am once again hoping and praying Alvaro Morata shows up and takes over a match. He needs to start finishing the chances he gets. Morata with a goal and Willian with the second.
Kevin Peacock: 0 – 3. Chelsea’s last visit to Turf Moor came in the final throes of Antonio Conte’s time at Chelsea. In that game, he chose to play both Olivier Giroud and Alvaro Morata together from the start. Chelsea won 2-1. Obviously, neither striker scored.
With Hazard suffering a slight back injury following the United game, this one may be good for him to sit out, giving at least one of the strikers a chance to shine. If Chelsea can start well as they did against BATE in midweek this game will be a walk in the park. Otherwise, it could be a long afternoon. Sean Dyche’s team won’t just sit back, though, and that may well help Maurizio Sarri’s side. Olivier Giroud finally gets a goal after replacing two-goal hero Alvaro Morata.
Gabe Henderson: 1 – 3. Turf Moor is an incredibly difficult stadium to play in. Chelsea will make a defensive error early on in the match and come from behind to win 3-1, similar to how the Cardiff match went. Usually, I’d predict this to be a closer match. However, Burnley are coming off a 5-0 drubbing at the hands of Manchester City and Chelsea are coming off a quality win in European competition. With Hazard likely fit for the match, the Blues will have no problem creating chances.
Hugo Amaya: 1 – 2. A game where Chelsea should really learn a lot. Somehow this will be a close call for the Blues. Unable to really break down the opponent’s defense, Chelsea will be frustrated for the majority of the match. After finally breaking through and scoring once, the defense will slack off and concede. But late in the second half, the Blues will find the winning goal. Thanks to this performance, Sarri will put some serious work into some areas and come back stronger next game.
Barrett Rouen: 1 – 2. The Blues are not in a good way, but neither are Burnley, so that’s positive.
Abhishek Pancholi: 0 – 3. Burnley will start aggressively, but the tough guy act will wear off as they realize they’re just running around without ever getting near the ball. Chelsea, for once, will make the possession count and *gasp* take shots from distance.
Ross Barkley will be the instigator-in-chief, scoring a long-ranger and rattling the woodwork in the first half. Pedro will mark his return to the team with another and Giroud will round things off towards the end.