Premier League giants Chelsea will be looking to keep their place atop the Champions League group when they travel to Roazhon Park this Tuesday evening. The Blues are coming into this tie on the back of a comfortable 2-0 win against Newcastle United in midweek, where despite having a flurry of good chances, they were unable to put a lot of them away. Despite that, Lampard will surely be happy with the fact that Chelsea’s defensive fragility seems to be a thing of the past, having conceded just one goal in seven matches across all competitions.
The Blues are currently sitting pretty at the top of Group E, with second-placed Sevilla behind them by virtue of a lower goal difference. With the Blues set to face off against the Spanish side in the final gameweek of the group stages, it would be in their best interest to get maximum points till that point. Rennes, on the other hand, are sat at the bottom of the group, without a single win to show for their efforts so far. If Lampard’s side are able to produce half as much quality as they did against Newcastle, then there’s every chance that they’ll walk away from this clash as convincing winners.
Team News
The London club have had a flurry of injury problems to deal with all season, with only one match in the campaign so far seeing them field what fans consider to be a full-strength squad. The one player who is almost sure not to play any part in this fixture is Christian Pulisic, who according to Lampard is on his way back to fitness. Kai Havertz is set to return to action in this match having missed the international break and then against Newcastle after testing positive for the Coronavirus. Thiago Silva is another name who was rested for the win against the Magpies, and the veteran centre-half is likely to come back in as well.
Here Is The Predicted 4-3-3 Chelsea Lineup Vs Rennes:
Predicted 4-3-3 Chelsea Lineup Vs Rennes
Defence
Since the arrival of Edouard Mendy in between the sticks, the Blues’ defensive worries have all seemingly gone out the window. Unlike Kepa Arrizabalaga, the Senegal international is brimming with confidence, and dropping him from the eleven is out of the question for Lampard. In front of him, expect to see Thiago Silva return to the side after missing out in the weekend. Kurt Zouma is likely to keep his place alongside the Brazilian, thereby bringing back the pairing that has worked so well in recent weeks. Reece James and Ben Chilwell are expected to continue in the wide areas as well.
Midfield
The return of Kai Havertz to the eleven could force Lampard into making a couple of changes. The one player that is surely going to be a constant in the core of the team is French destroyer N’Golo Kante, whose form over recent weeks has been exemplary. Mateo Kovacic could drop down to the bench for this clash to be replaced by Jorginho, as the Italian played no part in the Blues’ weekend Premier League win. The other change that Lampard could opt to make in the core of the team is replacing Mason Mount with the returning Kai Havertz.
Attack
Tammy Abraham has been in fine goalscoring form over recent fixtures, but this midweek clash could provide the manager with the perfect opportunity to give the Englishman a bit of a rest. Timo Werner could instead be pushed into the centre-forward role, with Callum Hudson-Odoi likely to take over from the German on the left flank. Hakim Ziyech has been nothing short of brilliant since carving a place for himself in the side, which means that there’s every chance the Moroccan retains his position on the opposite side of the Blues’ attack.
