Chelsea fans have been without club football to consume for about six weeks, but considering the circumstances, that’s not necessarily a bad thing. Chelsea has picked up two points from their last 15. three back-to-back losses against Brighton & Hove Albion, Arsenal, and Newcastle United, left Graham Potter and Chelsea to stew in their misery for the entirety of the World cup break. This is a roundabout way of saying Chelsea needs wins. Who does Potter trust to get them this time?
Kepa Arrizabalaga (No. 1) Goalkeeper, Spain
At 3.7 saves per game and an 81 per cent save rate, Arrizabalaga is in much better form than Edouard Mendy. This is added to the fact that Mendy did not have a great World Cup and the decision is a clear-cut one for Potter.
Reece James (No. 24) Right back, Chelsea
James has returned from his injury and this means certain aspects of Chelsea will improve, like chance creation and ball progression. James will be playing as a right back in this game if Potter decides to go with a four-man backline, he’d need to be extra alert to his defensive duties and he wouldn’t have an extra centerback to cover him.
Trevoh Chalobah (No. 14) Right centerback, England
Chalobah has played well in most games this season, initially due to injuries but later due to merit. He is also in better form than Kalidou Koulibaly, who also didn’t have a great World Cup.
Thiago Silva (No. 6) Left centerback, brazil
Silva, though, had a great time in Qatar. He was very good in all his games for Brazil and has been Chelsea’s best centerback so far this season.
Marc Cucurella (No. 32) Left back, Spain
Cucurella starts. Lewis Hall has now been moved to the senior team, which is good. However Potter needs experience in this game, and the team is likely in a better place mentally if Chelsea go with ‘Cucu’, as opposed to Hall, at this moment.
Jorginho (No. 5) Central midfielder, Italy
Chelsea simply has no one that can do what Jorginho does for CFC.
Denis Zakaria (No. 20) Central midfielder, Switzerland
Zakaria had a positive impact in the World Cup when he came on against Portugal. He helped Chelsea in the Champions League game against Dinamo Zagreb too.
Conor Gallagher (No. 23) Right attacking midfielder, England
Gallagher has many good qualities that can help the Blues in this game, but he never got to show off those qualities in the World Cup as he never played a game. Hopefully, he gets the chance to showcase his talents
Mason Mount (No. 19) Central attacking midfielder, England
Mount was poor before the World cup and during the competition. he’s likely to start against Bournemouth, as Potter has shown to desire to stick with players he already trusted, and he trusts Mount.
Raheem Sterling (No. 17) Left attacking midfielder, England
Sterling was also ineffective during the World Cup and before it. He needs to step up his game, I’m out.
Kai Havertz (No. 29) Center forward, Germany
Havertz had a very good World cup and also scored a hat-trick in the Blues‘ recent friendly.