Chelsea will look to make it back-to-back Premier League wins heading into the international break as they take on Burnley on Saturday afternoon.
After an incredibly frustrating start to the season, the Blues found some much-needed form on Monday night as they beat Fulham 2-0 at Craven Cottage. Prior to the win over Fulham, they defeated Brighton 1-0 in the third round of the Carabao Cup.
Mauricio Pochettino’s side will have their tails up heading to Turf Moor to face Burnley, who will be in a buoyant mood after picking up their first three points of the new season in a 2-1 win at Luton Town on Tuesday.
Chelsea Team News
Moises Caicedo sustained a knock to his knee in the win at Fulham, but he is expected to be available for selection on Saturday. It is not yet clear whether Mykhaylo Mudryk will be available though, as the club continue to assess a thigh injury that forced him off at half-time.
Reece James is closing in on a return from a hamstring injury, but he will serve a one-game ban this weekend for improper conduct, while fellow right-back Malo Gusto will serve the third and final game of his three-match suspension.
Meanwhile, Ben Chilwell is ruled out until December with a hamstring injury, joining Christopher Nkunku, Trevoh Chalobah, Wesley Fofana, Romeo Lavia and Marcus Bettinelli on the sidelines.
Predicted Chelsea lineup vs Burnley (4-2-3-1)
Goalkeeper
Robert Sanchez is a certainty to be in the Chelsea net again, hoping to make it three clean sheets in a row in all competitions.
Defence
With Malo Gusto suspended and Reece James still recovering from his injury, Marc Cucurella is set to continue on the right side of a back four. Levi Colwill continues to impress on the other side at left-back and should retain his spot in the Chelsea lineup.
This leaves Thiago Silva and Axel Disasi as the starting centre-back partnership once again, and the duo must work hard to keep Lyle Foster quiet at the weekend.
Midfield
Chelsea’s midfield dynamic worked extremely well against Fulham, so there is no way Pochettino will want to make any alterations to it. Moises Caicedo is expected to shrug off the knock he picked up at Fulham and start in the double pivot with Enzo Fernandez in the centre of the park in the Chelsea lineup.
Caicedo and Fernandez will be joined by Conor Gallagher operating as a free No.10.
The trio of Fernandez, Gallagher and Caicedo will be responsible for dictating the pace of the game and carving out chances in the final third for the forwards. Lesley Ugochukwu has to be content with a spot on the bench once again.
Attack
As Mudryk was forced off with a thigh problem at half-time against Fulham, his availability on Saturday remains a big doubt. If he misses out, Raheem Sterling should take the Ukrainian’s spot on the left flank in the Chelsea lineup. Cole Palmer was impressive on his first league start for the Blues and is a surefire starter on the opposite flank.
Back from a long injury layoff, Armando Broja repaid his manager’s faith by scoring against Fulham on Monday. While Nicolas Jackson is back after his one-game ban, Pochettino is expected to stick with Broja up top at Turf Moor.
