Sarri to hand Loftus-Cheek another start? – Predicted Chelsea XI to face Manchester City

published

6/12/2018 8:00 PM

Predicted Chelsea XI to face Manchester City in the Premier League

Chelsea suffered a shock 2-1 defeat at the hands of Wolverhampton Wanderers at the Molineux in the Premier League on Wednesday night.

The Blues have lost two of their last three games in the Premier League and they will be up against it when they play host to Manchester City on Saturday.

Manchester City are currently 10 points clear of Chelsea at the top of the table and the Citizens will be the outright favourites to take all three points from this fixture.

Chelsea will be desperate to close the gap on Pep Guardiola’s men at the top of the table but they will need to upset the odds in order to do so.

Team News

Victor Moses (lower back injury) and Ross Barkley (ankle injury) are doubtful to feature on Saturday while Marko van Ginkel is a long-term absentee with a cruciate ligament injury.

Formation: 4-3-3

Manager: Maurizio Sarri

Predicted XI

1. Kepa Arrizabalaga (GK)

The Spaniard did not do enough to keep out Raul Jimenez’s effort in the last game and he will need to improve against Manchester City.

2. Cesar Azpilicueta (RB)

The Spaniard has been solid at the back all season and he will need to be at the top of his game to keep City at bay on Saturday.

3. David Luiz (CB)

Andreas Christensen put up a poor display at the back against Wolves so Sarri should reinstate the Brazilian in the eleven against City.

4. Antonio Rudiger (CB)

The German wasn’t at his best against Wolves and he will need to be more commanding to keep Manchester City at bay.

5. Marcos Alonso (LB)

His dip in form in recent weeks is becoming a real concern now and he will need to step up his game on Saturday.

6. Jorginho (CDM)

He has established himself as an indispensable component of ‘Sarri Ball’ and Sarri should hand him a start ahead of Fabregas, who was pathetic against Wolves.

7. N’Golo Kante (RCM)

The Frenchman was nowhere near his best against Wolves and he will need to rise to the occasion on Saturday if Chelsea are to have any chances against City.

8. Ruben Loftus-Cheek (LCM)

He was one of Chelsea’s brightest players in that debacle at Molineux and deserves a start at the weekend as well.

9. Pedro (RW)

The Spaniard has been in good goalscoring form this season and Sarri should hand him a start ahead of Willian who has been in poor form this season.

10. Eden Hazard (LW)

The Belgian maestro showed glimpses of his brilliance against Wolves but he will need to be at the top of his game on Saturday.

11. Olivier Giroud (ST)

Morata was very disappointing on Wednesday and didn’t have a single shot on target, which should prompt Sarri to hand the Frenchman a start.