Ahead of their game with Southampton, there have been some news leaks within the Blues camp. This is the Chelsea leaked lineup news including who is dropped, who may start, and what the leaks mean for the starting eleven.
Chelsea Leaked Lineup vs Southampton
Thiago Silva Dropped
Silva has been a mainstay in the defence since the season began. The veteran Brazilian has aged like fine wine and continues to be one of the best players at the club. Despite that, the defender has reportedly been dropped for the clash with the Saints, possibly to give him a rest ahead of an important run of games.
Reece James Dropped
The Englishman has already racked up a lot of minutes since making his return from a major injury, he will seemingly be rested as he is not in the squad at all. The right-back is likely having his game time managed as he still looks to be recovering from the knee issue that took him out of the World Cup.
Other Absentees
The pairing of Marc Cucurella and Hakim Ziyech have been left out of the squad. The absence of Cucurella means three of the four first-choice defenders won’t be taking part in the match with Southampton. Ziyech missing out could spell the return of Raheem Sterling who has been dealing with injuries recently.
In less surprising reports, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has also been excluded from the team, per Darren Lewis of The Mirror. The experienced striker has been frozen out recently with Kai Havertz leading the line in his place.
Chelsea Leaked Lineup
With so many names missing there should be some players returning from injury. Based on the leaks we expect this to be the starting eleven that Graham Potter goes with:
GK – Kepa Arrizabalaga
LB – Ben Chilwell/Lewis Hall
CB – Kalidou Koulibaly/Wesley Fofana
CB – Benoit Badiashile
RB – Trevoh Chalobah/Cesar Azpilicueta
DM – Enzo Fernandez
DM – Ruben Loftus-Cheek
AM – Mykhailo Mudryk
AM – Joao Felix
AM – Noni Madueke/Raheem Sterling
AT – Kai Havertz
