Hello, and welcome to
Sports Mole's live coverage of the match in the Premier League between Burnley and
Chelsea.
While Chelsea have been phenomenal this season, they have been helped out by the teams around them all dropping points at certain stages of the season and that happened once again on Saturday as Spurs slipped up away at Liverpool. It lead to the Merseyside giants getting back into the hunt but it meant that second-place Spurs hand Chelsea the chance to move 12 points clear this afternoon. Can Burnley do anything to stop them?
If their home record is anything to go by, then the answer is yes. Burnley go into this game having won nine of their 13 matches at Turf Moor and it's form which has proven the difference between a crack at finishing in mid-table and facing a struggle at the bottom of the standings. There's still time for that to change, of course, but going into a fixture with the league leaders with a nine-point cushion above the bottom three is a dream scenario for the Clarets and to a certain extent, there is absolutely no pressure on them this afternoon. Could that work in their favour?
Anyway, without further ado, let's get cracking with the team news.
BURNLEY XI: Heaton; Lowton, Keane, Mee, Ward; Boyd, Barton, Westwood, Brady; Gray, Barnes
BURNLEY SUBSTITUTES: Robinson, Flanagan, Arfield, Vokes, Darikwa, Gudmundsson, Tarkowski
CHELSEA XI: Courtois; Azpilicueta, Luiz, Cahill; Moses, Kante, Matic, Alonso;
Pedro, Costa, Hazard
CHELSEA SUBSTITUTES: Begovic, Zouma, Ake, Chalobah, Fabregas, Willian, Batshuayi
The big news coming out of the Burnley dressing room is that both Ashley Westwood and
Robbie Brady make their first starts in a Clarets shirt. They come in for Jeff Hendrick, who is ruled out through suspension, and Scott Arfield, who is only named as a substitute. Sam Vokes is only named on the bench, despite scoring in each of Burnley's last three home fixtures in all competitions.
As for Chelsea, they are unchanged after getting the better of Arsenal last weekend. There had been the suggestion that
David Luiz could be rested due to a persistent knee problem, while Cesc Fabregas and Willian were contenders to come into the team, but Conte keeps faith with the same XI.
HEAD TO HEAD! Today's match represents the 94th time in which these two teams have faced each other in a competitive fixture and somewhat surprisingly, Burnley have registered the most wins! The North-West outfit have emerged victorious on 37 occasions, with Chelsea claiming 34 wins. However, Chelsea are undefeated in Premier League games between the two with four wins and a draw to their name.
The majority of the UK saw plenty of snow at some point yesterday and it's no different this afternoon. The white stuff has started to come down in the North-West and while I don't think it's going to stick, it's enough for people to start zipping up their coats. Arsene Wenger will be relieved that he isn't at Turf Moor today.
We've already touch upon the fact that Chelsea have not lost to Burnley in the Premier League, and the last meeting between the sides, which took place in August, ended in a 3-0 win for the Blues.
Eden hazard, Willian and Victor Moses chipped in with the goals, but we are sure that you want to read our match report about the game so get
clicking here.
Chelsea will face a tough ask to stop Burnley scoring in front of their home supporters, but this stat suggests that they are well-equipped to do so.
To follow up what I just said about Burnley scoring at Turf Moor, they have netted in every match at their North-West stadium over the last 10 games. The last time they failed to do so was in the 1-0 defeat to Arsenal back on October 2.
Gary Cahill has been one of the key figures of the Chelsea backline this season and today, he makes his 150th league appearance for the club. It will also be his 225th game in all competitions. Not bad for a £7m from Bolton Wanderers, is it?
It has been well documented that Burnley have an abysmal away record and you would have thought that would have contributed to plenty of goals being conceded, but Dyche's side have only let in 35 goals this season - the 11th best in the league. I guess that backs up why a number of clubs are said to be trying to sign
Michael Keane. His battle with
Diego Costa is one I'm looking forward to today.
PREDICTION! Not many teams manage to put Chelsea under pressure, but we have a feeling that Burnley will do just that. As we touched upon earlier, they can play with a certain amount of freedom and that gives Dyche the chance to be more ambitious than he may have been if his team were struggling to remain in the division. It may be somewhat bold, but we are going for a 1-1 draw.
We are just about ready to get going at Turf Moor. The snow has just about turned to light sleet too.
Burnley get us underway.
There's been a few crunching tackles already but the first foul of the day is a tame one by Barton on Costa. Pedro whipped in the free kick but it was well defended by the hosts.
CHANCE! Chelsea are already into their stride and they should probably take the lead when Costa plays a sublime pass through to Hazard, who has run behind the defence. However, his shot is lacking power and Heaton makes a comfortable save.
GOAL! Burnley 0-1 Chelsea (Pedro)
This is a class goal from surely the champions to be. A rapid counter-attack sees Moses make inroads down the right and after playing the ball into Pedro, the Spaniard does the rest with a touch to wrong-foot the defender before sliding the ball into the bottom corner.
Soon after the goal, Barnes got a decent shot away for Burnley but Courtois made the easy save. It's been a good response from the home team but they are up against it here.
David Luiz - who is donning a ponytail this afternoon - tries to score with a free kick from around 40 yards out but he gets no power behind his shot and Heaton gathers.
Burnley are making a decent go of this but the way they are set up - with two up top - you can see Chelsea scoring at least a couple more goals. This is an important period of the game for the home side because while the match can't be won, it can certainly be lost.
We mentioned in the build-up that David Luiz had been struggling with a persistent knee problem and he's not moving all that great at the moment. No-one is warming up to replace him yet but it could be an issue.
SHOT! The issue with David Luiz doesn't contribute to Barnes getting a shot away here, but it's close nonetheless. The attacker moved inside before attempting to curl the ball into the top corner but he couldn't get enough whip on it and it went just wide.
GOAL! Burnley 1-1 Chelsea (Brady)
What. A. Strike. Matic fouls Barton on the edge of the area and it appeared that the midfielder would get up to take it. However, responsibility fell to Brady and the club-record signing curled the ball into the top corner from 25 yards. It's a sensational effort. Turf Moor is rocking!
That looks a naughty one from Barnes, who appears to elbow Azpilicueta. The referee deems it unintentional, however, and only a talking to takes place.
Burnley are the better side now and David Luiz looks a liability at the back due to his knee. He does well to keep up with Gray but the forward sends a shot across the six-yard box without finding a teammate. Lucky escape for the Blues.
Chelsea are trying to slow the game down and establish more control. Burnley weren't dominating by any means but they were starting to put the league leaders under pressure in their own final third. It's been a while since Chelsea posed any threat to Heaton's goal.
CHANCE! Courtois keeps Chelsea level with an excellent save. A fine pass from Barton picks out the run of Lowton but despite doing the right thing and attempting to keep the ball low, Courtois sticks a foot out to prevent him from scoring from 12 yards out.
Just five minutes to go in this half and what an intriguing first half it has been. There was every indication that Chelsea would run away with this after taking an early lead but Burnley have been fantastic and fully deserve to be on level terms.
There's not a whole lot happening in these closing stages. Maybe both teams are happy to reach half time.
There will be one minute of added-on time.
HALF TIME: Burnley 1-1 Chelsea
The half-time whistle goes at Turf Moor and we are level after super strikes from both Pedro and Robbie Brady. It's all to play for in the second half and don't be surprised to see Burnley get something from this game. They have been excellent so far.
Slowly but surely, the two teams are making their way back out. I don't think there are any changes.
Chelsea get us back underway.
CHANCE! David Luiz looks to be really struggling with that knee and he can't turn in time to intercept a pass through to Gray. The forward has time to pick a corner but he hits the ball far too close to Courtois from inside the penalty area. It's a huge opportunity.
Chelsea have had a bit of joy at the start of this second half but it's Burnley who are making most of the running. It's noticeable how much pressure they are trying to put David Luiz under - he's being crowded out when he gets the ball.
What is Mee doing there?! A lapse in concentration leads to Costa gaining possession of the ball in the penalty area but despite several twists and turns, he can't create the space to fire the ball into the corner.
For all of David Luiz's lack of mobility, he is still making some vital interceptions. They are almost John Terry-esque. Burnley are back in the ascendancy.
I don't think it will be too long until Conte makes a change, providing that he intends to go for three points rather than just the one. The little flicks and final balls aren't paying off at the moment.
SHOT! That would have been a rarity - an Azpilicueta goal! The defender decides to take aim from 25 yards but his effort just clears the crossbar.
SUBSTITUTION! The first change of the game comes from Dyche, who introduces Arfield for Brady.
SUBSTITUTION! Now Conte acts and brings on Fabregas for Matic. That's about all that is happening in this game at the moment.
BOOKING! Westwood plays the ball straight to Hazard and he is forced to bring down the Belgian to stop him advancing further towards goal.
SUBSTITUTION! Another change for Chelsea with Willian coming on for Moses. That's a sign that Conte is not settling for a point.
Chelsea have created a couple of opportunities in the last few minutes but both have been scuffed by Hazard and Fabregas respectively. They would have both expected to have hit the target.
BOOKINGS! It took a while for the referee to find his yellow card but he can't stop showing it now. David Luiz is cautioned for dissent and Lowton is booked for a foul on Costa.
SUBSTITUTION! Less than 10 minutes to go in normal time and Burnley are looking the more likely to find a winner. Dyche thinks so too and is bringing on Sam Vokes for Gray.
CHANCE! A strong tackle from Kante on Barton leads to Chelsea moving forward in numbers but despite Pedro being found around 14 yards out, his first-time curling effort is always clearing the crossbar.
SUBSTITUTION! Final change for Chelsea with Batshuayi coming on for Pedro.
BOOKING! The referee's easiest decision of the afternoon comes when Barton clatters into Willian.
BOOKING! Fabregas is now booked for hauling down Barnes. Both sets of players are doing anything to stop their opponents getting close to goal.
There will be four minutes of added-on time.
Still no more chances to speak of. I think we are heading towards a draw, which I predicted earlier.
FULL TIME: Burnley 1-1 Chelsea
The full-time whistle goes at Turf Moor and Burnley have held on to secure an impressive 1-1 draw with Chelsea, who simply didn't do enough to move 12 points clear at the top of the table. However, it's a result which probably suits both teams and while Chelsea are 10 points clear of second place, Burnley are also 10 points clear of the relegation zone.
That will be all from Sports Mole for this game. Thank you for joining us this afternoon and we hope that you can stick around for the match involving Swansea City and Leicester City. Goodbye for now.