Guaranteed in the last 16 of the FA Cup, Chelsea return on Wednesday, January 31, to the English Championship 2017/2018 competition. At the Stamford Bridge stadium in London, you will receive Bournemouth as part of the tournament’s twenty-fifth round schedule. The start is scheduled for 17:45 (BrasÃlia time).
Chelsea’s recent performance
In the same stadium the Blues defeated Newcastle, 3-0, on Sunday, January 28, for the FA Cup. It was compensation for the failure of four days earlier when, by taking Arsenal 2-1 at home, they were out of the League Cup decision.
In the Premier League, title is out of the question. With 50 points (15 wins, five draws and four losses), 15 less than Manchester City, the only goal that looks real for Chelsea is to try to take Manchester United out of second place and try to finish the season as vice- champion.
To do so, you need to improve your home performance. It is precisely in this item that lies the difference between them. Not that the Chelsea campaign at Stamford Bridge is disastrous. In its stadium, the club added 26 of the 36 points that it disputed. He is the fifth best in the Premier League. In the same number of games, however, United added 39 points appearing as the second best entrant of the tournament.
Coach Antonio Conte seems to have a tongue-in-cheek response when he is billed for a better performance by Chelsea, who is the current English champion. He complains of the cast he considers very small and complains, especially, of the lack of at least one more attacker.
So must wait for the medical department to determine whether the Spaniard Alvaro Morata (20 games in the English Championship 2017/2018, ten goals) can act. He is recovering from a back injury that took him out of his last three games.
If it is vetoed again, the only option left for the coach for position is the Belgian Michy Batsuayi (12 games, two goals), who scored two goals in Sunday’s match for the FA Cup, but may leave the club. He asked to be transferred because he did not come and try the number of opportunities he wants to show his football and try to secure a place in the World Cup in Russia.
Other contentious problems include goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois (23 games), defender David Luiz (nine games, one goal) and midfielder Willian (24 matches, four goals).
The current form of Bournemouth
Bournemouth have had a much longer period in preparation for Wednesday’s showdown. He made his last match on January 20. As a visitor, he started the 1-1 draw at West Ham for the twenty-fourth round of the English Premier League. Having already been eliminated both from the League Cup and the FA Cup, he had the period to try to improve the quality of the game.
Coach Edie Howe knows this will be necessary in the missing rounds as the relegation threat has not yet been removed. With 25 points (six wins, seven draws and 11 losses), the club is in twelfth place. The advantage in comparison with Southampton, first in the sticking zone in the eighteenth place, is only three points.
To set up the team, he will also need the help of the medical department, which will have to evaluate whether defender Tyrone Mings (two matches in English 2017/2018, no goal), midfielder Harry Arter (13 goals, one goal) and striker Jermain Defoe (15 games, three) can play.
History of the bouts between Chelsea and Bournemouth
There were six matches involving the teams. The first was Bournemouth’s victory. All others were beaten by Chelsea, who were responsible for eliminating their rivals in the current season of the League Cup by scoring on 2 December, 2-1. In October, as the Premier League visitors, the London team won by 1 to 0.
With the possibility of relying on Morata’s return and acting in their domains, Chelsea does not open much space for high-risk guesses. It is the best option for Wednesday’s game against Bournemouth. Appears at 1.28 in Bet365. Draw has a return of 6.50 and successful visitor pays 11.00 per 1. Quotes valid at 1pm on 1/29/2018.