West Ham United |
3 - 1Stadium: Boleyn Ground (London)
This match has ended. Upcoming related matches:
TV Coverage / Live Streaming
|
Chelsea |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Share: |
|
Chelsea will be desperate to return to winning ways when they take the short trip to Upton Park to do battle with east London rivals West Ham on Saturday.
The Blues have yet to win since the arrival of new coach Rafael Benitez, and should the European champions fail to obtain a desirable result it would further dampen their chances of fighting for the honours this season.
In fact, Chelsea have not won a single game in their last five, with their last win coming in the UEFA Champions League group match against Shakhtar Donetsk. Meanwhile, the last time they tasted victory in the English Premier League was against Tottenham in October.
But despite their deep struggles, Chelsea should still rate their chances of overcoming mid-table West Ham, a side who lost their last two league games against Manchester United and Tottenham.
Benitez will be unable to count with the services of suspended Brazilian defender David Luiz as well as injured captain John Terry for Saturday's game, while Frank Lampard and Daniel Sturridge are both in serious doubt of missing out on selection also due to injuries.
Once again, Fernando Torres will be Chelsea's lone striker, even if he has not managed to find the back of the net in the Premier League since the 4-1 victory over Norwich at Stamford Bridge in early October.
Rivals West Ham have a poor record against the Blues in recent years, but despite coming into the contest as the clear underdogs will still be aiming to pull off a big upset in front of their home fans.
The east Londoners will be without no less than four players for the clash, these being Ricardo Vaz Te, Alou Diarra, Yossi Benayoun and Jack Collison. But the good news is that George McCartney and Mark Noble will return to action after missing out on the defeat to Manchester United at Old Trafford due to suspension.
West Ham, who have only scored 16 goals in 14 games this season, will adopt a rather defensive approach against the Blues, with former Liverpool striker Andy Carroll being their target man in the attack.
Nov 28, 2012: Manchester United 1-0 West Ham (English Premier League)
Nov 25, 2012: Tottenham 3-1 West Ham (English Premier League)
Nov 19, 2012: West Ham 1-1 Stoke City (English Premier League)
Nov 11, 2012: Newcastle United 0-1 West Ham (English Premier League)
Nov 28, 2012: Chelsea 0-0 Fulham (English Premier League)
Nov 25, 2012: Chelsea 0-0 Manchester City (English Premier League)
Nov 20, 2012: Juventus 3-0 Chelsea (UEFA Champions League)
Nov 17, 2012: West Bromwich Albion 2-1 Chelsea (English Premier League)
- West Ham have suffered defeats in their last three games against Chelsea, conceding ten goals and scoring just two.
- Chelsea have not lost a single game at Upton Park since the 2002-03 English Premier League season.
West Ham 0-1 Chelsea