Having handed Leicester City yet another defeat in the Premier League this season, Chelsea will now welcome their former manager in Jose Mourinho who will lead his Manchester United side to a crunch game this weekend. Mourinho’s side are fresh from a stalemate over nemesis Liverpool and will hope to have a better result against the Blues. Chelsea will hope to replicate their form from the previous weekend and lack of any games in the mid-week will also help them in this game. Mourinho on the other hand was busy in the week with a Europa League tie and will hope that his team is ready for this game. Here is the preview of this game along with the team news, predictions and expected lineups:
The Chelsea vs Manchester United game will be played on Sunday, the 23rd of October, at the Stamford Bridge in London. The kickoff is scheduled at 4:00 pm BST (8:30 pm IST).
Team News:
The manager missed the services of Oscar and Willian due to personal reasons for the Leicester City game but the duo is expected to be back in action this weekend. However, Conte will be without Cesc Fabregas, Branislav Ivanovic, Kurt Zouma and Van Ginkel, all of whom are still nursing injuries. Skipper John Terry is declared fit for this game but might not make a start.
Manchester United do not have too many problems ahead of this trip to London. Phil Jones was joined by James Wilson in the long term injury list and are the only players missing from this game. Morgan Schneiderlin and Chris Smalling are close to a return but will undergo late scans before making an start.
Expected Lineups:
Chelsea:
Courtois; Terry, Luiz, Cahill; Azpilicueta, Kante, Matic, Alonso; Willian, Costa, Hazard
Manchester United:
De Gea; Valencia, Bailly, Blind, Shaw; Pogba, Herrera, Rashford, Mata, Martial; Ibrahimovic
Key Battles:
Diego Costa vs Eric Bailly:
The summer buy for United, Bailly has been decent at the back this season for Mourinho but he will face his toughest test yet when he will be up against Chelsea’s inform Diego Costa this weekend. The Spaniard is the highest goal scorer in the league this season so far and has to be stopped if United are to take anything from this game.
Anthony Martial vs Cesar Azpilicueta:
The French international came back into action in the Europa League and was impressive enough to start this game. However, he will be up against Chelsea’s skipper John Terry who is just back from an injury. Surely this battle can decide the outcome of the game.
Key Stats:
Manchester United have lost more Premier League fixtures against Chelsea than any other side (16).
Of those 16 Chelsea wins against Manchester United, five were recorded by Jose Mourinho, more than any other boss for the Blues.
Jose Mourinho lost just one league game at Stamford Bridge between 2004/05 and 2014/15 (W76 D21). He then lost four of his final eight games there in 2015/16 (W3 D1).
The only time in his career Mourinho has managed an opposition side at Stamford Bridge was with Inter Milan in March 2010, knocking out Chelsea in the Champions League.
David Luiz has twice scored against Manchester United in the Premier League but his only own goal is against the Red Devils.
Wayne Rooney has gone six Premier League games without scoring against Chelsea, this after converting two penalties against them in February 2012.
Manchester United have won just one of their last eight Premier League trips to London (W1 D3 L4).
Zlatan Ibrahimovic scored against Chelsea in both of his appearances against them last season in the Champions League.
After scoring with four of his first 15 shots in the Premier League, Ibrahimovic has failed to find the net with any of his last 26 in the competition.
Diego Costa has scored seven times in his opening eight league games this season. Only two Chelsea players have scored more goals in their first eight matches of a campaign – Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink in 2001/02 (8) and Diego Costa himself in 2014/15 (9).
This season, Jose Mourinho has registered his lowest points total (14) after his first eight league games with a new club since his stint with Uniao de Leiria (10 points).
Since his debut in August 2012, Eden Hazard has scored more Premier League goals than any other midfielder in the competition (44).
Betting Odds:
Chelsea: 23/20
Draw: 9/4
Manchester United: 5/2
Prediction:
Playing at home, Chelsea might be considered slight favorites to take away all three points from this game but Jose Mourinho will know the ins and outs of his former club and will set his team up in such a way that he will atleast get a point from this game. Surely, it is one of the clashes to watch out for in the weekend and can produce a thrilling encounter.
Our Prediction:
Chelsea 2-2 Manchester United