Willian and N’Golo Kante are set to return while Tammy Abraham is in contention to start when Chelsea take on Leicester City on Saturday.
Chelsea will be aiming to bounce back to winning ways in the Premier League and close the gap to third-placed Leicester City when they lock horns with the Foxes at the King Power Stadium on Saturday afternoon. And, Frank Lampard has received a twin fitness boost ahead of his side’s latest fixture.
Tammy Abraham (ankle) and Reece James (knee) have trained after recovering from their respective injuries. The duo are in contention to start against Leicester. In goal, meanwhile, Kepa Arrizabalaga should return to the lineup after making way for Willy Caballero for the FA Cup tie against Hull City last weekend.
In defence, James’s return means Chelsea captain Cesar Azpilicueta ought to move out to the left-back slot, with James starting on the right flank. At the heart of the Chelsea defence, Antonio Rudiger should be back in the side, with Fikayo Tomori likely to accompany him after impressing in the cup tie.
Changes aplenty are expected in midfield as well, with former Leicester City superstar N’Golo Kante expected to return, having regained fitness. Like Kante, Jorginho should also make his way back into the side, starting at the base of the three-man midfield, with Mateo Kovacic keeping his place in the middle of the park.
Upfront, the big concern for Lampard has been over the fitness of Tammy Abraham, who picked up an ankle injury in the 2-2 draw with Arsenal. During his pre-match press conference, the Chelsea manager provided a positive update on the English striker.
“Tammy trained today and felt okay. We need to see if there’s a reaction because it’s a pain injury, there’s a lot of pain and even in training he has pain. I’m going to look at that one overnight and test him in the morning but he did get out there today, which is a positive in the longer-term.”
Michy Batshuayi has struggled to make an impression in Abraham’s absence and with the first-choice striker “feeling okay”, it is likely that he will start. Willian also ought to return, replacing Pedro, while Callum Hudson-Odoi should pip Mason Mount to the final spot.
Chelsea Predicted XI: Kepa; James, Rudiger, Tomori, Azpilicueta; Kante, Jorginho, Kovacic; Hudson-Odoi, Abraham, Willian
Our great coach didn’t sign any player are we likely to finish in the top four!!!! Today we shall crash liecster city 3_1 in favor of chelsea
3_1 in favor of chelsea