£50m player returns and striker dilemma: Chelsea predicted XI vs Burnley
On Saturday afternoon, Chelsea will travel to Burnley in an effort to make it three victories in a row in all competitions.
The Blues’ penultimate Premier League match before this month’s international break is this Sunday at Turf Moor against Burnley.
The team led by Mauricio Pochettino defeated Brighton last week in the third round of the Carabao Cup. On Monday, they followed that up with a league victory away at Fulham, a close rival.
We’ll now watch to see if Chelsea can maintain its lead against Vincent Kompany’s Burnley team.
According to The Chelsea Chronicle, Pochettino will make two alterations to the starting lineup that defeated Fulham earlier this week.
GK and defence
There’s some notable omissions right now at the back with a host of injured players, which is why this defence may pick itself.
We’re expecting the same back five to start against Burnley, which includes first-choice goalkeeper Robert Sanchez in net again.
Marc Cucurella should continue in this unfamiliar right-back position. Meanwhile, Levi Colwill continues to impress on the other side at left-back.
That leaves Axel Disasi and Thiago Silva as the starting centre-back partnership once again.
Midfield
Chelsea’s midfield dynamic worked superbly well against Fulham, so we can’t picture a world in which Pochettino wants to change that.
Therefore, we think it’ll be Moises Caicedo and Enzo Fernandez as a midfield pivot.
They are joined by Conor Gallagher playing just in front of them as a roaming No 10.
Attack
The first of two adjustments might involve Mykhailo Mudryk being replaced on the left wing by £50 million attacker Raheem Sterling (BBC). This is due to The Evening Standard’s allegation that Mudryk is questionable to face Burnley due to an injury.
Cole Palmer, who is superb, is likely to keep his position to the right. That only leaves the striker with a problem.
Armando Broja will likely be replaced by Nicolas Jackson in the weekend starting lineup to complete two lineup changes, but Pochettino must be having a terrible time making this choice.
Given that both Jackson and Broja, two center-forwards, scored goals in their most recent appearances, there isn’t much separating them. We merely believe that Jackson has an advantage due to the players’ fitness.
