They might have put a stop to their downward spiral, but Chelsea are still far from the side that conquered the Premier League last season. With just 15 points from their first 14 games, Jose Mourinho's side still sit closer to the relegation zone than anywhere near the sides battling it out for the title, and they will hope that the worst is finally behind them as they welcome Bournemouth to Stamford Bridge later today.
Chelsea
It goes without saying that this has been the worst start to a campaign for Chelsea in most fans' recent memories and even securing a top-four spot appears to be a tall order for the London giants. However, with many more games left in the season, supporters will hope that better times are yet to come. A dull scoreless stalemate with Tottenham earned them a point, but with each passing game and negative result dragging them further down the table, Mourinho will expect a better reaction from his squad as they aim to at least enter the Christmas break in the top half of the table.
Much of the chatter following the draw with Spurs centered around Diego Costa, who was benched for the entire game and did not hesitate to show his annoyance with his manager's decision. With reports that the Brazilian-born Spanish international was out partying late with some of his teammates, it will be interesting to see if Mourino again benches the combative attacker or puts some of his pride aside to return him to the starting XI. However, he may opt to again leave him on the sidelines and experiment again with a striker-less formation and deploy Eden Hazard again as his most advanced attacker.
As Gary Cahill and Kurt Zouma are starting to form a good understanding in the center of defense, fans may see Mourinho again rely on the duo to provide the defensive backbone for a side that has been shockingly porous at the back this season. However, with reports that captain John Terry has recovered from an ankle problem, he may re-instate Terry back in the starting XI as the veteran defender could reach 300 Premier League wins should the Blues win this afternoon. Of note will be the return of first-choice goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois after his long injury lay-off as the Belgian star has been declared fit to finally resume his spot between the sticks.
Bournemouth
Meanwhile, Bournemouth are winless in their last eight Premier League games, although two back-to-back draws will have perhaps given the visitors a glimmer of hope. They are, however, sitting in the bottom three, but as a result of Chelsea's poor form will be fancying their chances at an upset and lifting themselves out of the drop zone.
However, their leaky defense will be a cause of concern, having conceded 30 already thus far but the Cherries showed great mental fortitude in clawing their way back into the game to salvage a 3-3 draw against Everton. And interestingly enough, despite being five points below Chelsea in the league standings, they have enjoyed success in their recent visits to London, with three wins out of their last four visits. However, Chelsea have managed to keep a clean sheet and win their last three competitive matches against the visitors.
This will be the first meeting between the two teams since 1994 and visiting manager Eddie Howe will have to make do without a slew of players, including Artur Boruc, Adam Federici, and Marc Pugh as an injury crisis has struck the already struggling club. Boruc and Federici will be especially of concern as they are two of their goalkeeping options and Howe may have to call on youngster Ryan Allsop to take over in their stead.
Which channel is broadcasting Chelsea vs Bournemouth on TV or Online?
If you happen to be in London, of course, you may have the chance to watch the action live from Stamford Bridge. For Blues fans elsewhere, LiveSoccerTV.com has plenty of options to catch the game from your TV, computer, phone, or tablet. Here are some selections for those who reside in the following countries:
- In the USA at 12.30 EST on: NBC Sports Live Extra, NBC, SiriusXM FC, NBC UNIVERSO, NBC Deportes En Vivo Extra, Westwood One Sports
- In the UK at 17.30 GMT on: Sky Sports 1/HD UK, SKY GO Extra, Sky Go UK, NOW TV UK
- In Canada at 12.30 ET on: Sportsnet West, Sportsnet World Now, Sportsnet East, Sportsnet Ontario, Sportsnet Pacific
Live elsewhere? No problem. Simply check out our special Chelsea vs Bournemouth broadcast page for viewing times and options for your specific location.
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