Just days after a defeat to Fulham it is time to suit up again for Premier League action. This predicted Chelsea lineup aims to see how Graham Potter will set up against mid-table Crystal Palace with injuries piling up and just three days between games.
Predicted Chelsea Lineup vs Crystal Palace on January 15
How Chelsea Have Lined Up Recently
With numbers depleting more and more with each passing match, the team sheet becomes more familiar. The defence is guaranteed to have Kepa Arrizabalaga, Thiago Silva, Cesar Azpilicueta, and Kalidou Koulibaly. Preferred left-back/wing-back option Marc Cucurella has been dropped in favour of Lewis Hall in recent games which presents one major toss-up.
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The midfield pairing of Denis Zakaria and Mateo Kovacic got one run-out but an injury to Zakaria means Jorginho is likely to reclaim his spot in the middle of the park. Kai Havertz and Mason Mount are constant fixtures in the attack, but who joins them is a mystery as regular partner Raheem Sterling is injured while Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has been dropped.
Chelsea Recent Tactics and Form
Potter briefly tried out a 4-2-3-1 setup but didn’t have much success, which saw him revert to the 3-4-3 against Fulham. Neither formation has yielded great results, but the Blues operate better in the 3-4-3 so they’re likely to put some square pegs into round holes to make it work.
Chelsea Injuries to Consider
How long have you got? The injury crisis at Stamford Bridge is almost unbelievable and it only got worse during the West London Derby. The current injured list is Zakaria, Sterling, Reece James, Edouard Mendy, N’Golo Kante, Wesley Fofana, Ben Chilwell, Armando Broja, Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Christian Pulisic, and a suspended Joao Felix.
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Felix and Zakaria are the biggest misses as both were performing quite well.
Predicted Chelsea Lineup
While it is expected that the team lines up in a 3-4-3 there could also be some rotation to keep legs fresh after the effort put in against the Cottagers. Because of that Hall is likely to lose his starting spot to rest his legs, while one of Havertz or Mount could miss out too. Currently, our predicted lineup is as follows:
GK – Kepa Arrizabalaga
CB – Kalidou Koulibaly
CB – Thiago Silva
CB – Benoit Badiashile
LWB – Marc Cucurella
RWB – Cesar Azpilicueta
CM – Jorginho
CM – Carney Chukwuemeka
AT – Kai Havertz
AT – David Datro Fofana
AT – Hakim Ziyech
