Chelsea will host Crystal Palace at Stamford Bridge on Wednesday evening, hoping to return to winning ways in the Premier League.
The Blues knocked Newcastle United out of the Carabao Cup in a penalty shootout last week, but they were downed 2-1 by Wolverhampton Wanderers on Sunday, their fourth away league loss in a row. The result against Molineux keeps the west London club in 10th place in the rankings.
Mauricio Pochettino would have been dissatisfied with his team’s lack of creativity in front of goal against Wolves. He expects a rousing response from his players against Crystal Palace, who are winless in seven games.
Chelsea Team Information
Chelsea will be missing Raheem Sterling and Cole Palmer for the visit of Crystal Palace due to suspension, following the English strikers’ fifth yellow card of the season in the 2-1 defeat to Wolves.
Enzo Fernandez is expected to miss the game for the second week in a row due to a hernia, while defenders Reece James, Marc Cucurella, Wesley Fofana, and Ben Chilwell remain sidelined.
Noni Madueke and Romeo Lavia, on the other hand, are both available after returning from injury to make the squad against Wolves. Moises Caicedo was unable to play in Chelsea’s defeat at Wolves owing to sickness, and Pochettino hopes he will be available for the game against Crystal Palace.
Lesley Ugochukwu began against Wolves but was substituted with what seemed to be an injury, thus his participation in midweek remains uncertain.
Chelsea’s predicted lineup against. Crystal Palace (4-2-3-1)
Goalkeeper
Djordje Petrovic will continue to fill in for the injured Robert Sanchez in goal, and he will need to put in a strong performance if he is to maintain a clean sheet against Crystal Palace.
Defence
Chelsea will line up in a 4-2-3-1 shape, with Malo Gusto, Axel Disasi, Thiago Silva, and Levi Colwill on the defensive line.
Silva will play with Disasi in center defense, with Gusto and Colwill filling in at fullback.
The four must defend the goalie and keep the defense sturdy.
Midfield
Conor Gallagher has been a fixture for Pochettino and will likely start in midfield for Chelsea. If Moises Caicedo recovers from his sickness, he might partner Gallagher in the double pivot, with Nicolas Jackson operating in the hole behind the main striker.
Christopher Nkunku scored off the bench on his debut league appearance against Molineux and might be in line to start against Palace. Pochettino, on the other hand, is anticipated to bring him off the bench again as the Frenchman works to get match fit.
Attack
Due to the suspensions of Raheem Sterling and Cole Palmer, Mykhaylo Mudryk and Noni Madueke should start on the left and right wings for Chelsea, respectively. Pochettino will expect his wide players to be direct and cause difficulties for the opposing backline from the start.
Armando Broja is expected to be charged with spearheading Chelsea’s attack once more, and the Albanian will look to score against Roy Hodgson’s side.
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