Chelsea predictions at Cardiff: Should be easy win, but will Hudson-Odoi play?

Chelsea visit Cardiff City to open the final stretch of the Premier League season. The Bluebirds should offer little opposition, but the Blues do more to hinder themselves than most opponents ever could.

One team has already been relegated, another is only one loss away. Just above those two teams is Cardiff City. Chelsea should not have too much trouble with such relegation fodder, but with Maurizio Sarri plenty a “very high” defensive line this could easily turn into statistical domination in service of a loss or draw. Fortunately, our writers are rather optimistic about this one.

Brendan McDonnell: Vincent Tran’s embarrassing squad 0 – 2 Chelsea. I mean, Cardiff stinks, right? Sure, they won their last match against West Ham, but they are awful. I wrote in my preseason predictions they’d get relegated and they’re amazingly only in 18th (shouts to Huddersfield). I’m ecstatic to wake-up at 5am to watch 2,196 passes and exactly two shots on goal. If the Blues don’t pummel these guys, we have a bigger problem than we’ve ever written on this site.

Gabe Henderson: 0 – 4. Cardiff sucks, there’s no sugar coating it. The Blues are to the point where every match from here on out is a must-win. If there’s any chance at a top four spot, the run will start with smashing Cardiff. I have absolutely no faith in Maurizio Sarri’s men, but Cardiff are just that bad.

Goals will come easy and fast, with the rest of the match being as boring as ever under Sarri, even against a terrible side.

Karan Sarai: 1 – 3. Although Cardiff City are in the relegation zone and have had trouble scoring goals, Chelsea’s defence with David Luiz and Marcos Alonso always looks error prone and could concede. Others would work just fine in the back line, especially with Eden Hazard and N’Golo Kante performing their best and helping Chelsea win. Hopefully Sarri plays Hudson-Odoi so he gains more Premier League experience.

Barrett Rouen: 0 – 3. Chelsea have no reason to do anything other than win this, which makes me think it’s possible they won’t. Sarri surely must start Hudson-Odoi. He’ll be excellent because he’s excellent and that should be the end of it. This is pretty up in the air, but hope is a good thing.

Abhishek Pancholi: 0 – 2. On paper, this should be a no-contest. But many such papers have been rolled into cigarettes and turned to ash by Maurizio Sarri this season.

Cardiff will take the game to Chelsea, but the quality of individual players will make the difference on the day. God knows the tactical plan won’t be of much help. Another attritional display will only increase the murmurs of discontent among the travelling support. Unfortunately for them, Maurizio Sarri will live to make them suffer with the ball for yet another day on the basis of these three points.

Kevin Peacock: 0 – 4. If we believe Maurizio Sarri, Chelsea played their best football of the season during the first half of their 2-0 defeat against Everton last time out. I’m not having that. It was the same old, same old we’ve been served up all season.

Whether Callum Hudson-Odoi plays will be dependent on how Sarri views Cardiff: are they better than Montenegro or not? He might not play, and he won’t start. Feet on the ground, a**e on the bench.

Chelsea will win this game, though. Not even Neil Warnock’s motivational management will raise his players enough to trouble Chelsea. Eden Hazard scored a hat-trick at Stamford Bridge and will almost certainly be on the scoresheet again as Chelsea run out winners 4-0. I don’t even know why I said that but there you go #optimisticorstupid.