Chelsea vs. Newcastle United predicted lineups and team news
The threat of relegation may be gone but Chelsea continue to dwell in the bottom half of the table coming into this fixture. The Blues have picked up only two league wins and six draws since Guus Hiddink took over which is not good enough for a club with top […]
The threat of relegation may be gone but Chelsea continue to dwell in the bottom half of the table coming into this fixture.
The Blues have picked up only two league wins and six draws since Guus Hiddink took over which is not good enough for a club with top four aspirations.
Indeed, they are now a massive 17 points behind fourth-placed Manchester City which must mean that their top four hopes are all but gone for this season.
The last game saw a late goal by Diego Costa rescue a point against Manchester United but Kurt Zouma was unfortunate to have picked up a nasty injury which will see him miss the rest of the season.
Gary Cahill should replace Zouma in the Chelsea defense while Eden Hazard is expected to make the starting XI after coming off the bench in the last two matches.
Nemanja Matic is likely to be benched while Cesc Fabregas partners John Obi Mikel in midfield and Oscar returns to his preferred No. 10 role.
Newcastle United are finally out of the relegation zone after managing a 1-0 win at home to West Brom last weekend.
The Magpies are only a point above 18th-placed Norwich City so they will be desperate to cause an upset at Stamford Bridge come Saturday so that they won’t fall right back into the drop zone.
Steve McClaren must feel that his side has a real chance here after as Chelsea are winless in the last four league matches in front of their home supporters.
There are no new injury concerns for Newcastle which should see an almost identical starting XI to the side that beat West Brom last Saturday.
Daryl Janmaat and Jack Colback could make the squad after recovering from their respective injuries while Siem de Jong has been given a 50% chance of featuring.
Predicted Lineups
