Chelsea vs West Ham United
Date: 08/04/2018
K/O: 16:30pm
Venue: Stamford Bridge
Referee: Kevin Friend
TV: Sky Sports Main Event
Chelsea will be welcoming a jubilant West Ham side to Stamford Bridge this Sunday, as they look to recover from their devastating 3-1 defeat to Tottenham last weekend.
Contrastingly, West Ham will be hoping to carry on their good form from last week after they defeated a shambolic Southampton side 3-0 at the London Stadium.
Chelsea will be looking to beat a team that they have not lost to at Stamford Bridge in their last 11 Premier League games. A win for Chelsea is crucial as they try to stay in contention for Champions League football next season, despite currently sitting eight points adrift of Mauricio Pochettino’s fourth placed Tottenham Hotspur.
Embed from Getty ImagesAlthough West Ham would love the chance to do the double over their London rivals, a win could be massive in their search for survival as they could potentially be 8 points clear of the drop zone depending on other results.
Team News
Antonio Conte is able to welcome back star goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois to the squad after he missed the Spurs game due to a hamstring injury. Conte will also be able to recall Pedro as he has recovered from knock in time for the game against West Ham.
David Moyes in the opposing dugout will be without Michail Antonio after he damaged his hamstring against Southampton last week, which has put him out for the rest of the season. Moyes will likely be without star player Manuel Lanzini as he is struggling to overcome a knock, although he my make a spot on the bench for the Hammers.
Embed from Getty ImagesPredicted starting XI’s
Chelsea: Courtois, Azpilicueta, Christensen, Rudiger, Moses, Fabregas, Kante, Alonso, Willian, Hazard, Morata
Formation: 3-4-2-1
West Ham: Hart, Rice, Ogbonna, Cresswell, Zabaleta, Kouyate, Noble, Masuaku, Fernandes, Mario, Arnautovic,
Formation: 3-4-2-1
Prediction: Chelsea 3 West Ham 1
Chelsea and West Ham come in to this game in different moods, as Chelsea will be down after having lost ground on the top four, whereas West Ham have finally given themselves some breathing space from the bottom three. This game could be tight if the West Ham from last week turns up, as they have players who can hurt any team in the league such as Marko Arnautovic who has been on an incredible scoring run. Although Chelsea desperately need a result to get fans back on side after they were outclassed last weekend against Spurs.
Written by Henry Tomlinson.
