The latest Chelsea teams news, injury update and predicted XI ahead of their 2026/27 Premier League opening clash against Fulham
Chelsea get their 2026/27 Premier League season underway on Monday night, with a short trip to face west London rivals Fulham at Craven Cottage. New Blues boss Xabi Alonso will be eager to get off to a winning start, as he looks to spark a revival desperately needed by a side who finished a lowly 10th in the Premier League last season.
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The Blues have had a busy summer on the transfer front, with a number of players being sold and plenty of new arrivals joining too. Among them are £117m mega signing Morgan Rogers, veteran duo Danny Welbeck and Jordan Henderson, and exciting young talents Geovany Quenda and Valentin Barco.
Heading into their opening match, Chelsea have a relatively clean bill of health. Skipper Reece James has fully recovered from the hamstring injury that disrupted his 2026 World Cup campaign with England, but there are minor concerns over Henderson and Welbeck - the former is coming back from a broken wrist, while the latter has an unspecified knock.
Wesley Fofana won’t be involved against the Cottagers, after being sent off in the Blues’ dismal 2-1 defeat away to Sunderland on the final day of last season. As Chelsea look to get their campaign off to a dream start by securing all three points against Fulham, we’ve had a crack at predicting the line-up Alonso could field.
Chelsea predicted XI vs Fulham: Goalkeeper and defence
Chelsea skipper Reece James is will be hoping for an injury-free seasonplaceholder image
Chelsea skipper Reece James is will be hoping for an injury-free season | AFP via Getty Images
GK - Robert Sanchez: Chelsea have made it clear they won’t be signing a new goalkeeper this season, despite Sanchez’s struggles to establish himself as a reliable number one. He’ll start against Fulham, with Mike Penders serving as his understudy. We’ve already predicted that the Blues will make a U-turn in January and replace Sanchez, realising their error four months too late.
RB - Reece James: The skipper started the Blues’ pre-season friendly against Real Sociedad in a central midfield role, but this could well have been to ease him back into action with a lighter positional workload. He’ll be Alonso’s first-choice right-back this season, and will likely be restored to his favoured position to face the Cottagers.
CB - Maxence Lacroix: £51m was spent to bring the France international to Stamford Bridge, bringing some much needed experience to a notoriously shaky back line. Alonso looks likely to line up with a more attacking back four against Fulham as oppose to the back three he fielded against Real Sociedad, and Lacroix seems certain to be one of his two chosen centre-backs.
CB - Levi Colwill: It was a bitterly disappointing 2025/26 for Levi Colwill, who missed almost the entire campaign with an ACL injury. He’ll be fresh and ready to go, and will be a welcome return in the heart of the Blues’ defence as one of the first names on Alonso’s teamsheet.
LB - Marco Palestra: As things stand, it’s hard to predict who Alonso’s favoured left-back will be following Marc Cucurella’s exit to Real Madrid. £43m new signing Palestra can play on either flank, and is a more attacking option than Jorrel Hato, who is expected to compete for the position. Fellow new boy Pep Chavarria is also an option, but he may require more time to bed into the squad before being selected as a Premier League starter.
Chelsea predicted XI vs Fulham: Midfield and attack
Cole Palmer and Morgan Rogers are set to play a pivotal role in Chelsea's attack this seasonplaceholder image
Cole Palmer and Morgan Rogers are set to play a pivotal role in Chelsea's attack this season | Getty Images
CM - Enzo Fernandez: The World Cup runner-up was booed by some Chelsea fans against Real Sociedad, as he continues to be linked with a big-money move to Manchester City. Alonso could well still start Fernandez, with his inclusion likely to be a handy negotiating tactic in terms of showing potential suitors that he’s still highly valued by the club.
CM - Moises Caicedo: Another player set to be a vital cog in Alonso’s system, Caicedo looks set to resume his midfield partnership with Fernandez - for now, at least. The Ecuadorian ace is heading into his fourth season as a Chelsea player, and committed his future to the club until at least 2033 when he signed a contract extension back in April.
AMR - Estevao: Chelsea’s right flank is the other real question mark. Pedro Neto would normally be the first-choice pick, but given that he continues to be linked with a move away, we have a feeling he may miss out on a start on Fulham. It’s set to be a big breakthrough campaign for Estevao, and he could bag a start on Monday night.
AMC - Cole Palmer: A frustrating, injury-ravaged 2025/26 season saw a clearly exhausted Palmer struggle for form amid fitness issues. Having had the summer off, he’ll be champing at the bit to get going again, and will be looking to nail down the number ten spot having lost it to Fernandez during spells last season.
AML - Morgan Rogers: The jewel in the crown of Chelsea’s impressive summer rebuild, Rogers will be looking to hit the ground running and starting racking up the sort of goal contribution numbers he did with his former club Villa. He’s likely to start off the left, ahead of the likes of Jamie Gittens and Mykhailo Mudryk.
ST - Joao Pedro: Pedro is Chelsea’s undisputed starting solo striker, and impressed in pre-season, scoring seven goals in total. He netted twenty goals in his debut season at Stamford Bridge and, like Palmer and Colwill, will benefit from having had the summer off, after missing out on a place in Brazil’s World Cup squad.
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