Chelsea: Blues’ connections with the upcoming opponent, Burnley

A trip to Turf Moor is a slightly terrifying topic, and it is Chelsea’s turn to take on Burnley, prompting this edition of the connections profile.

Chelsea aims to build upon its unprecedented clean sheet streak as the Blues travel to Burnley on Saturday, fully aware the hosts have only scored three times in the league thus far. Roles have certainly been reversed from last season; Burnley’s keeper Nick Pope finished runner-up in the Golden Glove race with 15 shutouts, whereas Chelsea conceded the ninth highest number of goals in the league.

In this topsy turvy version of football we once thought we understood, only a fool would want to predict the outcome of this one (apart from The Pride of London staff, of course). What is for certain is that Chelsea and Burnley’s archive dates back to 1905. Yet, their Premier League history is relatively recent, their maiden encounter arriving in August 2009. 11 encounters later, and the Clarets have managed a singular scalping over the Blues, perhaps the most intriguing encounter of the lot.

More from Premier League

• Bournemouth 0-0 Chelsea player ratings: Abysmal, reckless, wasteful
• Bournemouth 0-0 Chelsea: 3 Blues talking points
• Chelsea vs Bournemouth: 3 things to look out for on the south coast
• Is there cause for concern about Chelsea being in 12th place again?
• Chelsea’s risky youth gamble amidst turbulent times

17th August 2017: curtain raiser for the latest campaign. Chelsea was fresh from securing its fifth top flight triumph and welcomed Burnley to Stamford Bridge, who’d just avoided relegation by six points. The script was written, the stage set … all for the visitors to stun newly knighted kings by winning 3-2. Not only was this the Blues’ first opening day defeat since 1998, but they also became only the second reigning champions to lose their following term’s opener. Adding insult to injury, Antonio Conte’s men were reduced to nine after Gary Cahill and Cesc Fabregas received red cards, also the first time this had occurred in an opening match. As for the Clarets, they had never won on the launch of the league, but traveled back to the north with three points in hand.

Aside from that barmy afternoon in west London, Chelsea have mainly prevailed. The latest contest at Turf Moor last October was a glorious occasion, particularly for Christian Pulisic. The Blues romped to a 4-2 victory, with the American bagging a perfect hat-trick, the youngest Chelsea player to do so. It was also a significant clash for both teams as Burnley commiserated its 200th Premier League fixture, whilst Chelsea was celebrating its 10,000th in the top flight.

On the subject of milestones, the 2-2 draw on April 2019 rounded Chelsea’s ‘goals against’ column to 1,000 in the Premier League. The 2-1 win a year earlier brought Conte to a century of games in charge of the side and more importantly, became the 500th game on a Thursday in English top-flight history. Another Italian manager with reason to smile is Maurizio Sarri, who became the first Chelsea boss to remain unbeaten in his first 10 Premier League matches when his Blues defeated the Clarets 4-0 on October 28, 2018. Jose Mourinho succeeded where Conte could not, beating Burnley 3-1 on the opening day of 2014, coinciding with a debut goal for Diego Costa and two debut assists for Fabregas.

The list of personnel who have crossed over from Chelsea and Burnley is far less illustrious than Costa or Fabregas. Jack Cork and Nathaniel Chalobah were sent out on loan for combined 16 separate occasions whilst on the Blues’ books, both with spells in north England. Chalobah only lasted a few months with the Clarets in 2014/15 before returning to his parent club. Cork, on the other hand, built a strong relationship with Burnley and Sean Dyche. He initially arrived part-time in 2010 and turned permanent in 2017, where the 31-year-old enjoys his football now.

What is your favorite Chelsea memory against Burnley? Let us know in the comments or on Twitter!