Chelsea Team News: Injuries, suspensions and line-up vs Man Utd
The Blues sit level on points with Manchester City and Liverpool at the top of the Premier League table as they prepare to host the Red Devils
Undefeated Chelsea are involved in a blockbuster match to restart the Premier League season after the international break as Manchester United visit Stamford Bridge.
United are currently trailing behind the rest of the top six as they sit seven points behind Manchester City, Chelsea and Liverpool, who occupy the top three places in the table.
Many pundits believe that Alexis Sanchez’s last-minute winner against Newcastle before the international break helped save the job of manager Jose Mourinho, meaning he remains in charge for a return to his old stamping ground.
Click Here: Argentina Rugby Shop
Maurizio Sarri could be set to heap more doubt on Mourinho’s long-term future at Old Trafford, as the Blues go into the match as heavy favourites.
Chelsea have suffered two main injury concerns over the international break after going into their last league game with a clean bill of health.
Antonio Rudiger suffered a groin injury at the end of Chelsea’s 3-0 win over Southampton but he has recovered. This is a huge boost as the defender becomes increasingly influential.
Ethan Amapdu, meanwhile, may only be a bit-part player for Chelsea, but he pulled out of the Wales squad after their recent 4-1 defeat to Spain left him with a knee problem.
Sarri says Ross Barkley has a minor injury and will likely miss Manchester United’s visit, but he is expected to be back for the midweek Europa League clash with BATE.
There’s another concern in that Callum Hudson-Odoi has come back from his time with England’s Under 20s team with a set back that will leave him out for a number of weeks.
Neither Chelsea nor Manchester United have any players out with suspensions ahead of Saturday’s clash, while there are no players in danger of bans should they pick up yellow cards.
Sarri faces another busy period handling his squad who will be battling for major honours on all fronts. The Manchester United game will be a big priority for Chelsea, with BATE Borisov to come in the Europa League on Thursday.
Willian is the only player at the club to have started in each of the last six games though Pedro remains a potential starter.
Chelsea have stuck religiously to a 4-3-3 formation this season and have operated with tactical consistency. Alvaro Morata has scored in each of his last two games which might give Sarri some food for thought after opting to play Olivier Giroud ahead of the £70m striker in recent weeks.
Ross Barkley may well retain his place ahead of Mateo Kovacic but the rest of the line-up looks set to be quite predictable, especially in comparison to that of United.
Mourinho has suffered the blow of having both Nemanja Matic and Luke Shaw added to the list of injury concerns ahead of their trip to west London, with the pair having both pulled out of their respective international squads since the Newcastle clash.
Scott McTominay has been a regular in recent weeks and he is also battling for fitness ahead of the Saturday afternoon kick-off while Ander Herrera and Jesse Lingard are expected to remain on the sidelines.
Marcos Rojo is a long-term absentee with a knee problem.
The match at Stamford Bridge kicks off at 12:30pm BST on Saturday, with live coverage available in the UK on Sky Sports Premier League from 11:30am and Sky Sports Main Event from midday. In the U.S. the game will be shown on NBCSN at 7:30am ET.
