Chelsea will entertain Tottenham Hotspur in a mouthwatering London derby which is set to take place inside Stamford Bridge on Wednesday night. The home side are wounded at the moment after being stung on penalties by Manchester City in the Carabao Cup final. On the other hand, Spurs will also come into this game having suffered a disappointing 2-1 defeat away at Burnley last week.
Both sides will be hoping for better fortunes when the match kicks off this weekend. Maurizio Sarri is expected to opt for a 4-3-3 formation to counter Mauricio Pochettino’s 4-4-2 (diamond) set-up for Spurs.
Team News
Chelsea
Gary Cahill, Davide Zappacosta and Danny Drinkwater are significant doubts for this contest, but otherwise, Sarri will have a full squad of players to choose from for Wednesday night’s clash at Stamford Bridge.
Both Callum Hudson-Odoi and Ruben Loftus-Cheek provided impressive cameos off the bench in the Carabao Cup final against Man City on Sunday so they would be eager to get a chance to shine against Spurs in midweek.
Tottenham Hotspur
Eric Dier will be in a race against time to be fit for this match, but Dele Alli will miss out due to a hamstring injury. However, there are no other fresh injuries worries for Pochettino ahead of this crucial league encounter at West London.
Predicted Lineups
Chelsea
Kepa Arrizabalaga; Cesar Azpilicueta, Antonio Rudiger, David Luiz, Emerson Palmieri; NGolo Kante, Jorginho, Mateo Kovacic, Willian, Gonzalo Higuain, Eden Hazard
Tottenham Hotspur
Hugo Lloris; Kieran Trippier, Toby Alderweireld, Jan Vertonghen, Ben Davies; Harry Winks, Moussa Sissoko, Christian Eriksen, Lucas Moura; Heung-min Son, Harry Kane
Key Men
Chelsea
Both Hazard and Higuain need to have a good game up front if Chelsea are to come away with maximum points from this contest. The performance of Jorginho in midfield will also determine how the match plays out between the two London teams.
Tottenham Hotspur
Kane will once again be tasked to lead the line for the away side so he would be expected to make a significant impact inside the opposition penalty area. Son has been Tottenham’s biggest weapon going forward over the past few weeks so he would look to replicate his excellent form away at the Bridge tomorrow night.
Odds
Chelsea win – 13/10
Draw – 5/2
Tottenham Hotspur win – 9/4
