Chelsea vs Burnley – Preview, Predictions and Best Bets

The Blues have won four of their five league matches under Liam Rosenior. Burnley have lost 11 of their last 17 EPL matches with just one victory.

Chelsea Form

Chelsea have played ten matches under new coach Liam Rosenior. They have seven wins, one draw and two defeats in that run. A 2-0 home league victory vs Brentford was followed by a 1-0 home win over Pafos. After a 3-1 win at Crystal Palace, they won 3-2 at Napoli to seal a top-eight finish in the Champions League.

A 3-2 home win over West Ham saw a comeback from 2-0 down. They lost 1-0 at Arsenal to lose 4-2 on aggregate in the Carabao Cup semi-finals. After winning 3-1 at Wolves, they surrendered a 2-0 lead to draw 2-2 at home to Leeds despite a 19-4 shot count. They bounced back to win 4-0 at Hull City in the FA Cup.

Chelsea Team Newss

Defender Levi Colwill is absent, as are midfielders Dario Essugo and Romeo Lavia. Tosin Adarabioyo and Reece James are available again in defence after injuries.

Jamie Gittens is out injured in the attack. Cole Palmer and Joao Pedro will start after being rested in the win over Hull City.

Chelsea Motivation

The Blues will see anything but a win as being like a defeat. They need a response to dropping points at home against Leeds.

Chelsea will dominate possession and will look to kill the game off. Rosenior’s side needs a strong performance for the full 90 minutes for the first time.

Burnley Form

The Clarets are having a terrible season. After winning successive league matches back in October, they went on a seven-match losing streak. Five draws in the next seven matches showed some sort of improvement, especially as they drew 2-2 at home to Man Utd, 1-1 at Liverpool and 2-2 at home to Tottenham.

A dire 3-0 loss at Sunderland was followed by a damaging 2-0 home loss to West Ham. Their 16-match winless streak in the league was finally ended by a 3-2 win at Crystal Palace having trailed 2-0. Last Saturday, Burnley suffered a shock 2-1 home defeat to Mansfield in the FA Cup fourth round.

Burnley Team News

Midfielder Josh Cullen is out long-term after knee surgery. Zeki Amdouni is another absentee after a serious knee injury. Defender Axel Tuanzebe is doubtful with a calf injury.

Right back Connor Roberts and centre back Jordan Beyer are also ruled out. Scott Parker saw Hannibal Mejbri go off injured against Crystal Palace, so James Ward-Prowse is on standby.

Burnley Motivation

Burnley are nine points off safety and need a miracle to stay up. They will try to go to Chelsea and nick a win.

If they fall two goals behind, they could focus on damage limitation.

Key Stats

• Chelsea have won 7 of their last 10 matches
• Chelsea have kept just 3 clean sheets in their last 17 matches (Both Teams Scored in 13/17)
• Chelsea’s Joao Pedro has scored 6 goals in his last 7 matches
• Burnley have won 1 of their last 17 league matches (11 losses)
• Burnley have drawn 3 of their last 5 matches at Stamford Bridge (2 losses)

Verdict

The Blues should win this game with ease. However, they tend to leak at least one goal.

Best Bet: Chelsea win and both teams to score at 2.50

Alternate Bet: Chelsea win (-2 goal handicap) at 2.45

Goalscorer Tip: Joao Pedro to score anytime at 2.15