Chelsea vs Fulham will open Matchday 18 with a 1:00pm GMT (8:00am EST) kick-off.
Fears that the game would be called off went out of the way. This is when Chelsea confirmed, through a statement on Wednesday, that the planned metro strike in London would not affect the Boxing Day action.
The home crowd could witness the Blues’ seventh win at Stamford Bridge whereas Fulham carry the humiliation from their 5-0 defeat to Manchester United at Craven Cottage. Forcing Chelsea to their first draw or to their third loss at the Bridge won’t be easy.
The truth is that Fulham have won only once away this season. That was against Wigan Athletic at the DW stadium on October 29.
Meanwhile, the Blues are unbeaten in their last 450 minutes of football in the English Premier League. 11 points separate them from leaders Manchester City but coach Andre Villas-Boas has refused to give up on winning the title.
“I think we can still win it,” the young Portuguese manager confidently declared following Chelsea’s draw away to Spurs, according to ESPN Soccernet.
“We've been in worse situations before and recovered to seven points. I'm sure we can shorten the distance.”
Still, dropping points would only narrow Chelsea’s chances of claiming the cup come May. The Blues are contemplating victory over Fulham.
Thankfully for them, captain John Terry is out to exhibit his mental strength despite the distraction from his race row with Anton Ferdinand.
“His quality and talent are never in doubt. He's completely focused to the cause of this football club,” Andre Villas-Boas believes.
The home crowd could witness the Blues’ seventh win at Stamford Bridge whereas Fulham carry the humiliation from their 5-0 defeat to Manchester United at Craven Cottage. Forcing Chelsea to their first draw or to their third loss at the Bridge won’t be easy.
The truth is that Fulham have won only once away this season. That was against Wigan Athletic at the DW stadium on October 29.
Meanwhile, the Blues are unbeaten in their last 450 minutes of football in the English Premier League. 11 points separate them from leaders Manchester City but coach Andre Villas-Boas has refused to give up on winning the title.
“I think we can still win it,” the young Portuguese manager confidently declared following Chelsea’s draw away to Spurs, according to ESPN Soccernet.
“We've been in worse situations before and recovered to seven points. I'm sure we can shorten the distance.”
Still, dropping points would only narrow Chelsea’s chances of claiming the cup come May. The Blues are contemplating victory over Fulham.
Thankfully for them, captain John Terry is out to exhibit his mental strength despite the distraction from his race row with Anton Ferdinand.
“His quality and talent are never in doubt. He's completely focused to the cause of this football club,” Andre Villas-Boas believes.
