The European Championships and big names on the transfer market have dominated headlines thus far this summer. During a normal offseason, it’s the release of the Premier League fixtures for the upcoming season that grab supporters’ attention. The June 16 release of the fixtures for the 2021/22 campaign flew under the radar because of the events going on elsewhere. Regardless, the hours leading up to the official schedule drop mimicked Christmas morning for Premier League fans. Of course, every club plays the same sides home and away, but it’s all about placement. Chelsea returns to action, hopefully in front of a sold out crowd, at Stamford Bridge on August 14.
The first and last clashes of the season are always the eye-catching contests, regardless of opponent. The Blues will kick off the campaign hosting London rivals Crystal Palace. For the first time in recent memory, they will also end their season with a relatively easy final bout. Stamford Bridge will play host to Chelsea versus newly promoted Watford on Championship Sunday, which is May 22.
The return of club football against Crystal Palace represents one of the Blues’ easiest opportunities to pick up points early on. The Champions League winners will travel to Arsenal and Liverpool before the opening month’s end. September kicks off with a rematch of the 2020/21 season’s Championship Sunday clash when Chelsea welcomes Aston Villa to SW6. A week later, the Blues travel across the capital to take on Tottenham before hosting a rematch of the Champions League final on September 25.
Things start to get easier after Chelsea squares off against Manchester City. October presents Thomas Tuchel’s men with the minimal challenge of Southampton, Newcastle and two newly promoted clubs (Brentford and Norwich City). A home tie with Burnley to start November awaits before competition ramps up again after the international break. Following a brief hiatus, Chelsea will travel to the King Power Stadium, which is sure to be hostile after the last couple of meetings between the sides. The Blues then play their first big six clash in two months when they host Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s Manchester United. The autumn concludes with the away scrap with Watford.
Before diving into the winter and spring contests, let’s take a look at Chelsea’s complete fixture list:
Our 21/22 agenda has been confirmed! 🔵
— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) June 16, 2021
Swipe for the full list of #PLFixtures! 👈 👉
The Blues escape all big six sides again in December, which has proven to be a pivotal month for managers in years past. A trip to West Ham United opens the month ahead of two home games in quick succession against Leeds United and Everton. Chelsea goes up the road to Wolverhampton the following week. A post-Christmas business trip back to the West Midlands awaits when Tuchel’s men go to Villa on Boxing Day. The Blues wrap up a successful 2021 when they host Brighton.
2022 is not going to be kind to Chelsea Football Club by the look of it though. After escaping the entirety of the big six in December, January has nothing but games against the Blues’ biggest competitors. Luckily, Chelsea starts off at home versus Liverpool on New Year’s Day before traveling to Manchester City following another international break. The Blues end the first month of the new calendar year with the familiar January clash against the bottlers from N17.
After a brutal opening two months of the campaign and January, Chelsea is rewarded with relatively smooth sailing the rest of the way. February brings with it matches against Brighton (A), Arsenal (H), Crystal Palace (A) and Leicester City (H). This is followed up by another month without clashes against the Premier League’s largest. The Blues take on Burnley and Norwich away, with March also seeing Tuchel’s side welcome Newcastle.
Chelsea hosts Brentford at the Bridge for the first league contest since 1946 to begin the penultimate month of the season. Trips to Southampton and Leeds follow the revitalized west London derby before the Blues return to London for another derby, this one against the Hammers. A trip to Goodison Park awaits on April 30 as Chelsea will look to win for the first time on the blue half of Merseyside since 2017.
The final fixtures of the season are clashes with Wolverhampton Wanderers—under the new management of Bruno Lage—at home and the away tie at the Theatre of Dreams. The Blues wrap up the 2021/22 campaign with the aforementioned game against the Hornets on Championship Sunday.
That’s it, the entire Chelsea fixture list for the upcoming league year. The standouts are the opening few games, as well as the harsh turn of the new year. Of course, a majority of these events are subject to change. The Premier League will undoubtedly flex a handful and others will be moved due to other tournaments. After all, the Blues will be involved in a plethora of competitions (Premier League, FA Cup, League Cup, Champions League, Super Cup and Club World Cup) after being crowned Champions of Europe. Overall though, the domestic draw was kind to Chelsea given the circumstances.
Which fixture are you looking forward to the most? Let us know in the comments or on Twitter!