Chelsea at Norwich City predicted XI: Fluid 3-4-3 returns

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LONDON, ENGLAND – OCTOBER 23: Mateo Kovacic of Chelsea and Teemu Pukki of Norwich City during the Premier League match between Chelsea and Norwich City at Stamford Bridge on October 23, 2021 in London, England. (Photo by Visionhaus/Getty Images) /

Cesar Azpilicueta (No. 28) Right wingback, Spain

Tuchel discussed how Reece James felt discomfort against Burnley and he hasn’t been involved in training due to injury. This is genuinely disheartening to hear as James is key to Chelsea’s gameplay. His mere presence is enough to boost the Blues’ attack to another level. In his absence, Tuchel will have to call upon Cesar Azpilicueta who has been struggling for fitness himself. Expect Chelsea’s ironman to put in a consistent shift, despite playing with pain.

Mateo Kovacic (No. 8) Central midfielder, Croatia

Mateo Kovacic didn’t start against Burnley and deserves a chance against Norwich. N’Golo Kante hasn’t been at his usual best in the past couple of games and deserves a break, as well. It would allow Kovacic to dictate play against Norwich and sneak in an assist or two.

Jorginho (No. 5) Central midfielder, Italy

Jorginho was missing from Chelsea’s starting line-up for several games in recent weeks. Few fans had their conspiracy theories about the situation, but the Italian returned to the starting XI against Burnley. While his performance wasn’t spectacular, it was effective, and he managed to do his job. He won all of his ground duels against Burnley and returned home with a passing accuracy of 91 percent. Expect Jorginho to pull the strings in midfield against Norwich in what should be a relatively comfortable outing for him.

Saul (No. 17) Left wingback, Spain

Tuchel loves the three-at-the-back system and it seems that he wants to stick with it long-term. The experiments with the 4-1-4-1 and 4-2-2-2 seem more or less over, and the gaffer wants to keep his tried and tested system for now.

Marcos Alonso is just returning from a bout with COVID-19 and Tuchel doesn’t have a lot of options in the left wingback role. Malang Sarr is originally a centreback and wingback might be too big an ask for him. Callum Hudson-Odoi has featured in the position in the past, but he is struggling with an injury, and it is unclear when he will return.

This means that Saul is the best candidate to start in the position. The Spaniard has been vocal about wanting to play in midfield, but his performances have been somewhat mediocre, and wingback is an excellent way to get some game time. Saul will probably start against Norwich and he will have to be wary about the defensive aspect of his position.

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