On a roll. The phrase seems to have become synonymous with the Chelsea Football Club nowadays. One of the first adjectives being used to described the London side has been this. And this has been going on for quite a while now. 10 weeks and running in fact. Antonio Conte will be thankful to Arsenal and Liverpool for inflicting those losses against them, which the Blues now feel came at the right time. It led Conte to re-evaluate what he had undertaken thus far and come up with what he has specifically mentioned as the Plan D. A 3-4-3 system in which his players have fit in like a glove. After 7 effortless wins, Conte would have been pleased with the difficult wins against Manchester City and West Bromwich Albion.
No team can win a title without slogging out a couple of matches and altering their style of play as they go about a match. And that is exactly what Chelsea have shown they can do in the last two weeks. They will be up against a Sunderland team who are planted in the relegation zone and are coming off the back off a chastening 3-0 loss against fellow strugglers Swansea City.
It will be a game of unequal’s and Conte will look to avert any kind of upset.
PREDICTED CHELSEA LINE-UP VS SUNDERLAND (3-4-3)
DEFENCE
Thibaut Courtois will be in goal. The Belgian has impressive statistics and although most of it is down to the rock solid defence in front of him, he has had to be alert despite spending most of the time on the periphery of the action. The 3-man defence will be comprised of Azpilicueta, Luiz and Cahill. The Spaniard has been flawless as usual. Luiz is a transformed player while Cahill has been his no-nonsense effective type.
MIDFIELD
Marcos Alonso has settled into his new role and surroundings and has been extremely effective. Having worked on his attacking play, he is now a much more balanced unit and brings much-needed stability on the wings. N’Golo Kante and Nemanja Matic look like they have been playing alongside each other for years and their contrasting playing style has suited the team perfectly. On the right has probably been the success story of the season for Chelsea. Victor Moses, a perennial loanee, has been brought back from the dead by the Italian and is looking at home at right wing-back.
ATTACK
Eden Hazard has rediscovered his touch on the left-wing and Pedro has been effective on the right. But the man who has at times single-handedly got them over the line has been Diego Costa who will be leading the line.
