Chelsea will be looking to bounce back as we look at the best predicted starting 11 and key details for their match vs Fulham for EPL 2023.
No current Premier League club has earned lesser points than Chelsea in the last 8 outings. They have registered only one win, 3 draws, and 4 losses. The last time they won only once out of 8 PL outings was in 2012.
Chelsea’s coach, Graham Potter is facing the heat at the moment. Ever since his joining, the road has not been smooth for him. Looking at the history of recent managers at Chelsea, it seems not much time is left for the Blues Boss to turn the table.
The list of injured players keeps on increasing as the season progresses. A long-term injury to key players in the likes of James, Pulisic, Mendy, Fofana, Chilwell, Kante, Broja, and Loftus-Cheek certainly didn’t help Graham Potter’s cause.
Signing Aubameyang in the catch-22 situation in the last transfer window didn’t provide fruitful results as the striker struggled to make come back in his return to PL. They need a couple of quality signings to change their fortunes this season.
Meanwhile, Fulham have made a great comeback at PL. They have already equalled the points tally of their last PL campaign of 2020-21. With 28 points in 18 games, they are away from the relegation battle which they fought almost every season they played in PL in the last decade.
History
Chelsea is certainly a better team if the overall record is considered. Fulham have won only once in PL against Chelsea and that too way back in 2006. But if we count on the current form then Fulham have the advantage with three back-to-back PL wins whereas Chelsea registered only one win in the last 5 PL outings which was against struggling Bournemouth in the last fixture of 2022.
Games Played: 87 // Chelsea won: 50 // Fulham won: 11 // Draw: 26
Fulham Current Form (Recent first): W W W L L
Chelsea Current Form (Recent first): L D W L L
Match Details:
League Type: English Premier League (GW 07)
Match Type: Fulham vs Chelsea
Stadium: Craven Cottage
When: January 13, 1.30 am IST (8 pm GMT)
Predicting Starting 11 for both Teams
EPL 2023: Fulham vs Chelsea Predicted Starting 11 for Fulham
Manager Marco Silva has done a great job with his troops, especially in organizing the defence. He has brought calmness to Fulham’s dressing room, and his mantra for leading Fulham to the top half of the PL table is to not do too much chopping and changes in the starting 11.
He made a strategy based on best-suited resources and opted for a 4-2-3-1 formation which he has used in almost every match this season. They have settled defence in form of Robinson, Ream, Diop, and Tete which is well supported by defensive midfielders Palhinha and Reed. The 4-2-3-1 formation suited the likes of Pereira and Mitrovic who are good at counterattacks and are clinical in finishing.
Goalkeeper: Bernd Leno
Defence: Robinson, Ream, Diop, Tete
Defensive Midfield: Palhinha, Reed
Attacking Midfield: Willian, Pereira, Decordova-Reid
Attack: Mitrovic
Formation: 4-2-3-1
EPL 2023: Fulham vs Chelsea Predicted Starting 11 for Chelsea
Graham Potter’s Chelsea problems do not seem to be ending soon. With Pulisic being added to an already long list of injured first-team players, selecting a starting 11 is a headache for Manager.
He has tried different formations to make the best out of the available options and might settle for 4-2-3-1 for this game which will not only provide an extra line of defence. But also help counter the in-form midfield of Cottagers.
In the attacking front, Sterling, Mount, and Havertz have to lift their game to bring Chelsea to winning ways. Aubameyang and Jorginho might come as the first change in the later stages of the game.
Goalkeeper: Kepa Arrizabalaga
Defence: Cucurella, Koulibaly, Thiago Silva, Azpilicueta
Defensive Midfield: Mateo Kovacic, Denis Zakaria
Attacking Midfield: Sterling, Mason Mount, Hakim Ziyech
Forward: Havertz
Formation: 4-2-3-1
EPL 2022-23: Fulham vs Chelsea Fantasy 11
Fulham have scored in their all PL fixtures this season barring two. Chelsea’s struggle in front of the goal is not a hush-hush situation anymore. They are still in pursuit of outright forward in this transfer window. Meanwhile, Kai Havertz is doing the job of the finisher.
Mitrovic is in the best of form, so he along with Kai Havertz is our fantasy CVC choice. Also, Sterling, Andreas Pereira, Mount, and Booby Reid are attacking the midfield options for our team based on their recent PL outings.
Our defensive options are also based on the attacking threats they possess during counterattack situations and on dead balls. With all said, let’s look at our chosen fantasy 11 for this match
Goalkeeper: Leno
Defenders: Cucurella, Tim Ream, Thiago Silva, Antonee Robinson
Midfielders Raheem Sterling, Andreas Pereira, Mason Mount, Bobby Reid, Kai Havertz
Forwards: Mitrovic
CVC Choice: Mitrovic and Kai Havertz
Squad Details:
Fulham Squad:
Goalkeepers: Bernd Leno, Marek Rodák
Defenders: Tosin Adarabioyo, Issa Diop, Shane Duffy, Layvin Kurzawa, Kevin Mbabu, Tim Ream, Antonee Robinson, Kenny Tete
Midfielders: Andreas Pereira, Tom Cairney, Nathaniel Chalobah, Daniel James, João Palhinha, Joshua Onomah, Harrison Reed, Manor Solomon, Willian
Forwards: Carlos Vinícius, Neeskens Kebano, Aleksandar Mitrović,Bobby Reid, Harry Wilson
Manager: Marco Silva
Chelsea Squad:
Goalkeepers: Edouard Mendy, Kepa Arrizabalaga, Marcus Bettinelli, Gabriel Slonina
Defenders: Thiago Silva, Trevoh Chalobah, Ben Chilwell, Kalidou Koulibaly, Cesar Azpilicueta, Wesley Fofana, Marc Cucurella, Reece James, Benoit Badiashile
Midfielders: N’Golo Kante, Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Mason Mount, Conor Gallagher, Jorginho, Mateo Kovacic, Hakim Ziyech, Denis Zakaria, Carney Chukwuemeka, Kai Havertz
Forwards: Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Raheem Sterling, Christian Pulisic, Armando Broja, David Datro Fofana
Manager: Graham Potter
Thanks for reading! What’s your take on the Fulham vs Chelsea starting 11 for EPL 2023? Please email your thoughts to footbalyticsofficial@gmail.com
ALSO READ: Exclusive: Sunil Chhetri – The Man who Shaped Indian Football
Akshay is an author at Footbalytics. His love for football started way back in 1998 when Ronaldo (Not Cristiano) was his first football hero, and the list keeps getting longer ever since.
Though Akshay is a Teacher by profession, he firmly believes that there is no better classroom than the Sports field and no better Teacher than Sports.
