This is a Chelsea predicted lineup for their opening match of the Premier League season. They will take on Crystal Palace in a London derby in their first competitive match since becoming world champions. We likely got a glimpse into the manager’s thinking with the eleven he chose against AC Milan so let’s dive right in.
Chelsea Predicted Lineup vs Crystal Palace for Premier League Opener
How Chelsea Have Lined Up Recently
Rob Sanchez and Filip Jorgensen both got starts in pre-season friendlies. Reece James, Malo Gusto, Trevoh Chalobah, Tosin Adarabioyo, Josh Acheampong, and Marc Cucurella started as part of the back four. In defensive midfield, Moises Caicedo partnered Andrey Santos initially before reuniting with his usual partner Enzo Fernandez for the last friendly.
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In attack, Tyrique George and Jamie Gittens both got starts on the left, Cole Palmer played centrally with Estevao and Pedro Neto sharing the right wing spot. Both Liam Delap and Joao Pedro started as the striker in a match apiece. There was plenty of substitutions hinting at the planned rotation as Jorrel Hato and Dario Essugo mainly played off the bench.
Chelsea Recent Form & Tactics
Enzo Maresca has stuck by his fluid 4-2-3-1 which shifts when in possession to usually a 3-2-4-1 although he can adapt and has been getting more flexible over time. In the Club World Cup, he successfully experimented with a non-fluid pivot as Palmer played on the wing and inverted so Gusto could overlap. We’ve seen something similar with Cucurella moving into the number 10 role as well. How the two deeper midfielders move and shift is usually the main focal point of Maresca’s setup.
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The Blues are coming into the season with a lot of momentum, a dominant victory over Paris Saint-Germain saw them become world champions before they made Bayer Leverkusen and AC Milan look like easy asks in pre-season. The loss to Flamengo is the only one in their last 12 fixtures across all competitions.
Chelsea Injuries to Consider
Per Premier Injuries there are a handful of absentees to contend with. Nicolas Jackson is suspended and won’t feature at all, Benoit Badiashile, Levi Colwill and Romeo Lavia are definitely injured and won’t play. Wesley Fofana could be fit but if he’s seen at all it will likely be from the bench. Mykhailo Mudryk remains out due to suspension. Breaking reports from a day before kick-off that Tosin will miss this one due to a small issue leaving the team woefully short of centre-back options.
Chelsea Predicted Lineup vs Crystal Palace
GK – Rob Sanchez
RB – Reece James
CB – Trevoh Chalobah
CB – Josh Acheampong
LB – Marc Cucurella
DM – Enzo Fernandez
DM – Moises Caicedo
W – Pedro Neto
AM – Cole Palmer
W – Jamie Gittens
ST – Joao Pedro