Graham Potter looks on, Enzo Maresca looks dejected
(Credit: Imago)
Joe Elvin
Thu 21 August 2025 8:57, UK
West Ham take on Chelsea on Friday in their first home match of the new Premier League season.
West Ham produced a dreadful performance against Sunderland in the opening game of the season and will be looking to make amends.
It finished 3-0 to Sunderland at the Stadium of Light, with some West Ham players looking well off the pace.
Graham Potter could make changes for the visit of Chelsea. Either way, an improvement will be demanded by the home fans.
West Ham manager Graham Potter watches the team from sideline with a frustrated look on his face.
Graham Potter will be looking for a reaction from his players after the 3-0 defeat to Sunderland (Credit: Imago)
Supercomputer doesn’t fancy West Ham’s chances against Chelsea
It’s undoubtedly a tough match to kick off West Ham’s schedule of home fixtures in the Premier League.
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Chelsea won the Club World Cup in the summer, and many are expecting them to be in the running for the Premier League title this season.
The Blues could only muster a 0-0 draw at home to Crystal Palace in their opening game, but the Opta Analyst’s supercomputer still makes them heavy favourites to take all three points at the London Stadium.
The supercomputer, which simulates the match millions of times based on data collected by Opta, suggests:
West Ham have a 22% chance of winning the game
Chelsea have a 54% chance of winning
There’s a 23.4% chance of the match finishing as a draw
West Ham predicted lineup to face Chelsea
Potter already needs encouraging performance from his West Ham players
Potter saved West Ham’s season after being appointed as manager last January.
The Hammers were on a long, painful road to nowhere under Julen Lopetegui. The performances were uninspiring. The results were more than worrying.
Potter steadied the ship. His team was effective even if the performances were hardly electric.
But the pressure is on him now after that 3-0 loss at Sunderland. The fans won’t accept many more toothless performances like that. Neither will the board.
Date Opponent
22 August Chelsea (H)
31 August Nottingham Forest (A)
13 September Tottenham (H)
20 September Crystal Palace (H)
29 September Everton (A)
West Ham’s next five league fixtures
It’s a tough fixture for West Ham, but they need to show that they can at least go toe-to-toe with Chelsea. If they’re steamrolled by the Blues, that could push Potter a lot closer toward the sack.
This might sound unrealistic at this stage of a new season, but that’s the nature of modern football. Potter already needs a big performance from his squad.
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