Premier League giants Chelsea will be eager to get through the Champions League group stages without facing defeat when they take on Krasnodar at Stamford Bridge on Tuesday night. The London club are coming into this fixture on the back of a morale-boosting 3-1 comeback victory against Leeds United on Saturday, where despite going down to an early Patrick Bamford goal, the likes of Olivier Giroud and Reece James stepped up to the plate in attack, while Thiago Silva and Kurt Zouma were nearly faultless in defence.
Having already secured progress to the knockout stages in the first place though, Frank Lampard is likely to rest a majority of the players that started the game against the Whites. The Blues’ most recent Champions League win saw them dismantle Sevilla at their home stadium after four goals from Olivier Giroud tipped the tide in the London club’s favour. With a busy Premier League schedule upcoming, Lampard will be keen on making this midweek match as easy an affair as they possibly can. Considering the form that they’re in, Krasnodar certainly have a tough task on their hands.
Team News
Hakim Ziyech pulled up with hamstring issue in the weekend win against Leeds United, which means that the Blues will likely be without the Moroccan for this Champions League encounter. The likes of Thiago Silva and Olivier Giroud could be rested as well, as Lampard is likely to be preparing for the important match against Everton next Sunday night.
Here Is The Predicted 4-3-3 Chelsea Lineup Vs Krasnodar:
Predicted 4-3-3 Chelsea Lineup Vs Krasnodar
Defence
Even though this match does give Lampard an opportunity to rest some key names, it doesn’t mean that Edouard Mendy is going to be dropped from the team. Expect the Senegalese international to remain in between the sticks, albeit with an entirely new-look defence line directly in front of him. Thiago Silva and Kurt Zouma could both drop down to the bench, to be replaced by the same combination that did the job against Sevilla last midweek – Antonio Rudiger and Andreas Christensen. Club captain Cesar Azpilicueta and Emerson could start in the wide roles as well.
Midfield
The midfield is another area of the pitch where Lampard could opt to make a couple of changes. Mason Mount’s work-rate against Leeds United was one of their bright spots from that tie, and the Englishman is likely to be given a rest, along with N’Golo Kante. This means that Italian international Jorginho and Croatian trickster Mateo Kovacic are both likely to come into the eleven. While the former Napoli man will sit in the slot in front of the defenders, Kovacic could have a more free role. The one player who retains his place in the starting eleven could be German starlet Kai Havertz.
Attack
This would’ve been exactly the kind of fixture where Olivier Giroud could be given some game-time, but considering the form he has been showing, it could well be Tammy Abraham who’s given the nod to start up top for this encounter. The tall Englishman only made a substitute appearance against Leeds, and could hence be raring to go in midweek. Young Callum Hudson-Odoi is likely to start the game over on the right flank, with American speedster Christian Pulisic starting on the opposite flank. The pace and directness of this Chelsea attack could cause Krasnodar all kinds of problems in defence.
