Reece James and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang will start when Chelsea host Bournemouth at Stamford Bridge on Tuesday.
Chelsea are currently ninth in the Premeir League table and will be hoping to close in on the top four when they take on Bournemouth on Tuesday. Missing out on the UEFA Champions League would be a devastating blow for a club like Chelsea. And Graham Potter will look to get his side firing once again after the World Cup.
Chelsea will be without the services of N’Golo Kante, Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Ben Chilwell and Wesley Fofana due to injury problems. But Potter spoke about the fit-again Reece James during his pre-match press conference.
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The Chelsea boss said, “The plan now is to try and help him play his minutes and the next challenge is building them up in the Premier League, which is not an ideal place to do that but he’s got the capacity to do it. We just need to be clear and careful with the minutes that he plays but I’m confident that the more football he plays, the more we’ll see what a fantastic player he is.”
Kepa Arrizabalaga had an injury prior to the World Cup break, and it will not be surprising if Edouard Mendy is handed a start here. While the Senegalese international has only trained for a couple of days, he should feature against Bournemouth.
In the back three, Cesar Azpilicueta is expected to partner with Trevoh Chalobah and Kalidou Koulibaly. Thiago Silva participated in the 2022 FIFA World Cup with Brazil and is expected to be given time to recuperate.
Reece James will start as the right-sided wing-back alongside the central midfielders, Conor Gallagher and Jorginho. Marc Cucurella will continue as a left-sided wing-back to round off the second line of press.
Mateo Kovacic and Hakim Ziyech went deep into the tournament with their respective teams and are expected to be rested here. Potter said on the duo, “We’re still waiting on Hakim and Mateo. They went to third and fourth place [in the World Cup], and played the game as well. It’s a big demand for them, they won’t be available for the game as a consequence.”
In the front three, Raheem Sterling and Kai Havertz are likely to be deployed as the wide forwards. Finally, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang will likely lead the line for Chelsea against Bournemouth, especially with Armando Broja being a long-term absentee.
Predicted Chelsea XI: Mendy; Azpilicueta, Chalobah, Koulibaly; James, Jorginho, Gallagher, Cucurella; Sterling, Aubameyang, Havertz
