Chelsea FC vs Manchester United- Preview

The winter break for the Premier League clubs are finally over and the teams are gearing up for the most crucial part of the season. The blues will be up for an uphill task as the side will have to face 3 top level oppositions including Bayern Munich in the UEFA Champions League Round of 16 fixture. Our boys in blue will be back at Stamford Bridge in this weekend’s Premier League fixture for a high voltage clash against the Red Devils. The blues are currently 4th in the league table and is 6 points above the 9th placed Manchester United. This fixture will be undoubtedly be a battle for the top 4 and also an opportunity for our gaffer to take a revenge for this season’s opener against the same opposition.

Frank Lampard’s Press Conference

Key takeaways from Frank’s pre match press conference this week were: Regarding the injury updates, gaffer stated that Christian Pulisic did train with the Under 23’s but won’t be fit for this fixture and a similar assessment was given by him for Ruben Loftus Cheek. Speaking about Tammy, he stated that the player is still feeling the effects of the last game, but he did train with the first team and was due to be assessed before getting him in the playing XI. Gaffer when asked about our recent signing of Hakim Ziyech from Ajax, he stated that he uses to watch him a lot and was impressed with the game that he played against Tottenham last season. Gaffer also asserted that the reason for him to sign a player like him in this club was to use his quality to utilise the final ball and finish off the game early which the blues have struggled to do this season.

When asked about the Kepa situation, Lampard stated that he wanted a reaction from the player after a poor run of form in the front of the Goalpost and was happy that the reaction was good from the Spanish no. 1. Finally,when asked about the opponents that blues will face this weekend at home, the gaffer stated that the opposition are a good outfit and is also a direct rival of the team. He also stated that he is well aware about the points and the gaps and as such the United and Spurs game are going to be big games for the blues for a place in the top 4.

Head to Head: Chelsea vs Manchester United

Both the sides have met on 185 occasions in all the competitions with Chelsea registering 54 wins against United’s tally of 80 wins along with 51 draws. Even though, in recent games this fixture has not given us the results that we wanted, but things do turnaround at some point and we hope that the results come in our favour soon.

Predicted Line-up for Chelsea

Chelsea are expected to play in 4-3-3 formation against Manchester City tonight. The midfield will be the focal point of Chelsea’s press and build up play against a strong counter attacking opposition in truth. This is the team we can expect for tonight’s game:

Photo Courtesy: www.buildlineup.com

Players to Watch Out for

Kepa Arrizabalaga: The recent form of our no.1 is under scrutiny and was recently dropped from our starting XI. Though, it is expected that his reaction to this situation will be positive and he will try raise his standard of performance and regain the trust of the Gaffer and our fans.

Mason Mount: Our young academy prodigy is in fine form and has produced big moments and goals for the team in the last few games. His role in the midfield would surely be a decider for the upcoming clash on Sunday. The fluidity and quality of Chelsea’s midfield will surely be tested in the upcoming clash and Mason would play a big role as a midfielder in the team.

N’Golo Kante: Stated as amongst the best CDM in the world at the moment, Kante is expected to be the player that the gaffer will be looking upon regarding the defensive duties at the back. His qualities to stop the counter attack from the opponent is something that the team will be expecting in tonight’s clash against the Red Devils.

Keep the Blue Flag Flying High…!!!

- Mainak Mitra