Shaken by a landslide in the Champions League, Chelsea licks the wounds and has a great classic ahead this Sunday, November 5, to try the reaction. In Stamford Bridge, London, will host Manchester United. With start scheduled for 14h30 (Brasília time), the match closes the eleventh round of the English Championship in its 2017/2018 season.
Chelsea’s recent performance
After securing the national title with some leftovers from the previous season, when he had no international commitments, Chelsea clearly signaled that he did not have enough of the squad in sufficient numbers to split between two tournaments and succeed.
On Tuesday, October 31, he was ruthlessly thrashed by Rome 3-0 in the Italian capital, losing the lead of Group C of the Champions League after four rounds. The Romans are on the edge with eight points against seven of the English. The situation is no longer complicated by the performance far below the expectation of Atletico Madrid, which has only three points and occupies the third position.
This gives Chelsea a good chance of advancing to the last 16 despite disappointing performances. Even at home, he narrowly escaped defeat for Rome. He emerged in the lead, took the turn and got the tie by 3 to 3 in the final minutes of the confrontation.
In the English Championship, the situation is similar. With 19 points (six wins, one draw and three losses), Londoners are in fourth place. It’s little to fight for the title, but it can not be considered a disastrous performance.
What gives some hope of improvement in both performance and results on the part of the fans is the emptying of the medical department. Following Alvaro Morata’s return (nine matches in the 2017/2018 season of the English Premier League, six goals) and the debut of newly-hired Drinkwater (a game without a goal), who can return to play the classic is the French midfielder N”- Goal Kanté (seven games, one goal).
Kanté won last season’s best player award and suffered a thigh injury in early October as he was serving his national team in the qualifying rounds for the 2018 World Cup in Russia. He was out of Chelsea’s last six games. He even traveled to Rome, but was not connected by coach Antonio Conte. He has won a few more days to improve his fitness and will probably be listed to face United.
Thus, the only remaining medical doubt is in relation to Nigerian Victor Moses (six games, no goal). He suffered a muscle injury that took him out of the last five games. You will also need to go through a new evaluation to see if you will be available to play the classic.
The current form of Manchester United
With more numerous than Chelsea and accustomed to split between competitions, Manchester United fulfilled its mission in the Champions League with two rounds in advance. By beating Benfica 2-0 at Old Tradfford on Tuesday, October 31, they reached 12 points in four matches, fired in the lead of group A and are in the knockout stages of the competition.
The challenge of the Portuguese coach Jose Mourinho, who has been criticized for the position considered too defensive of his squad, is to reach Manchester City, the leader of the English Championship. United, with 23 points (seven wins, two draws and one defeat), began the eleventh round with five points of disadvantage compared to the local rival.
Convinced of his strategies, Mourinho showed that he will not give in to the critics and will continue to prioritize the goal of first conceding goals and then seeking to swing the opponent’s net. That was the last three games. The team was not leaked and managed to beat Swansea (2 to 0), Tottenham (1 to 0) and Benfica.
In the Premier League, with only four goals conceded, United presents the least leaked defense of the competition. Despite the criticism, the attack has not left anything to be desired. Scored 23 goals, average more than two per game. It is the second best of the English Championship.
What is ultimately causing criticism to the industry is not the performance of United, which is acceptable. But City’s spectacular campaign, which marked 35 goals in the first ten rounds. This makes the comparison disadvantageous for Mourinho.
The Portuguese coach also waits for news from the medical department regarding two of his main players. Marouane Fellaini (six matches in the 2017/2018 English Championship, three goals) and Paul Pogba (four matches, two goals) are in injury treatment. If they are released they will certainly be related to the classic.
History of the bouts between Chelsea and Manchester United
The field factor was decisive in all three matches between the teams last season. For the English Championship, the blues thrashed by 4 to 0 in London. The Reds won 2-0 in Manchester.
The other match was worth the England Cup. Also in the capital, Chelsea eliminated the rival by making 1 to 0.
Chelsea have been showing great swings even within the same game. He presents moments of excellent football with great blackouts, especially in the defensive system with frequent failures of Antonio Rudiger (eight games, without a goal) and David Luiz (eight games, one goal). United is much more consistent. It oscillates less. However, it does not feature high-end peaks when compared to its main rivals.
The pressure placed on the blues after the rout in Rome is likely to provoke a reaction from the athletes. This makes the guess in the London team is the best option for the game. It has a price of 2.37 on Bet365. Draw returns 3.20 and successful visitor yields 3.00 for each real invested.
