Chelsea travels to the northwestern corner of London to Vicarage Road where it’ll take on Watford. The Blues are coming off a disappointing 1-1 draw with Manchester United at home and they are in desperate need of three points on Wednesday. Unfortunately though, that won’t be easy. Thomas Tuchel has a selection headache with a plethora of his midfielders out for the contest. N’Golo Kante and Mateo Kovacic are undoubtedly out—as is Ben Chilwell. Meanwhile, the likes of Jorginho, Reece James and Timo Werner are questionable with slight knocks picked up at the weekend.
Here is who Tuchel is expected to turn to in his starting XI at Watford:
Edouard Mendy (No. 16) Goalkeeper, Senegal
The best goalkeeper in the world will start in goal for Chelsea. Edouard Mendy continues to be underestimated by the world of football and his performances have gone unnoticed to an extent. However, none of that matters as long as Mendy is helping his team perform well and win trophies. Against Man United, Mendy’s distribution was uncharacteristically shaky and that is something that will be in the back of his mind. He must concentrate and ensure that he doesn’t gift any chances to Watford in front of goal.
Cesar Azpilicueta (No. 28) Right centerback, Spain
Cesar Azpilicueta has been unfortunate to not feature for the Blues regularly in the past few games. Since then, Chelsea’s captain suffered a shoulder injury in training and hasn’t returned to the starting line-up. With Trevoh Chalobah performing consistently and James in the form of his life, Tuchel has allowed the academy graduates to build on their momentum. An extremely busy schedule is coming up, and several key players are injured or on the verge of injury at the moment. It would be wise to rotate at this moment and Tuchel will probably want to see Azpilicueta back on the pitch. Expect Chelsea’s captain to start against Watford and lead the team by example.
Andreas Christensen (No. 4) Centerback, Denmark
Andreas Christensen is another name that has been missing from the line-up for some time. This is because Thiago Silva has been monumental for Chelsea in the past few games. The Brazilian hasn’t put a foot wrong in recent times and he has ensured that the back line remains focused throughout the game. A key aspect of Tuchel’s management has been effective rotation and he will have to manage Silva’s workload properly. He started all three games since the end of the international break and will probably be rested against Watford. This is the perfect game for Christensen to find momentum and send a quick reminder to everyone out there.
Antonio Rudiger (No. 2) Left centerback, Germany
Antonio Rudiger was under the spotlight against Man United. First of all, he almost scored from the long-range shots that he has been trying for a long time. His runs from the deep have been increasing in frequency over the past few weeks, and he seems highly confident on the ball. Rudiger will look to maintain his form and continue to take those long shots.