Chelsea vs West Brom: Three things to look for in return to action
3. Can Chelsea seal West Brom’s fate?
In all likelihood, West Brom is going down. The Baggies have been one of the Premier League’s worst teams this season and although at times they’ve looked impressive, there’s never been a shred of doubt about them returning to the Championship. The only thing West Brom has accomplished this season is it’s remained above Sheffield United, who has also been somehow more atrocious. Despite all of this, there has been a lot of talk surrounding a late push to safety. Fulham—who has been in the relegation zone for a majority of the season—has a reasonable chance of staying up. West Brom, on the other hand, needs a miracle.
The Baggies currently sit 10 points from the 17th spot with nine matches left in their season. There is obviously the bit of historical knowledge that Allardyce has never been relegated that works in West Brom’s favor, but the numbers are against them.
If Chelsea manages to beat its visitors on Saturday, West Brom is almost guaranteed to go down. This would leave eight games for Allardyce’s side to get at least 11 points—and that’s assuming neither Fulham or Newcastle earns another point from their remaining games. If getting 61 percent of the points the Baggies have up to this point in just eight matches isn’t enough, the remaining schedule makes the task even tougher. West Brom still has Leicester, Arsenal, Liverpool and West Ham remaining on its fixture list.
A win for Chelsea at the weekend would end all talk of momentum for West Brom. It’d kill the dreams of Baggies faithful and ensure they’ll play next season in the Championship.
Next. Chelsea should stay away from Erling Haaland's dog and pony show. dark
What are three things you’ll be looking for in the match? Let us know in the comments or on Twitter!