Chelsea has a huge match away to Leicester before the “winter break”. Both teams are battling over the best of the rest of the Premier League.
Chelsea being among the teams battling for best of the rest outside of Manchester City and Liverpool should not be surprising. Leicester doing so is and has been one of the stories of the season. They are reverting to their mean but they are still a very dangerous team. That danger will only be heightened by Chelsea’s recent struggles and injury issues. Frank Lampard will need his squad at their very best for Brendan Rodger’s Foxes.
Kepa Arrizabalaga, 1, Goalkeeper, Spain
Rumors have sprung up that Arrizabalaga has the rest of the season to win Lampard fully over. Maybe that is undeserved but it is not as though Arrizabalaga has been wowing as of late. Maybe he does have potential (and keepers do tend to develop over time more than all at once), but Chelsea cannot survive for long without a keeper that has earned the full trust of the manager. Arrizabalaga has a tall order ahead of him.
Reece James, 24, Right back, England
James will probably be a late fitness test but if he is close, Lampard will play him. He has simply been too effective as of late to leave him out. Lampard could opt for Cesar Azpilicueta and a true left back, but it is not as though any of the left back options seem to convince Lampard much as of late either. That pretty much means James walks in.
Andreas Christensen, 4, Center back, Denmark
Finding a strong center back pairing remains a box unchecked for Chelsea. Lampard has tried several combinations but not one has held its place for long.
Christensen has slowly worked his way into Lampard’s vision this season and he is closer to starting than not on most match days now. If he is trusted as he seems to be now, then he will start.
Fikayo Tomori, 29, Center back, England
It is still unclear as to why Tomori has dropped away as of late but it is clear that he should be playing if he is fit. A partnership of Tomori and Christensen is, on paper at least, Chelsea’s best on the ball pairing. They might not have the old school defending of either Antonio Rudiger or Kurt Zouma, but maybe that is not as needed against a Leicester side that will come at Chelsea.
Cesar Azpilicueta, 28, Left back, Spain
Azpilicueta is sure to start regardless. The only question is on which flank. With James fit, it seems incredibly likely that Azpilicueta will shift to the left to make room for the young full back. Azpilicueta has more gas in the tank than is openly admitted by many, but it is less than ideal for him to be the club’s best left back in the year 2020.
Azpilicueta is sure to be a big part of Chelsea going forward regardless, but Chelsea needs a new left back in the summer at the latest.