MX23RW : Wednesday, December 18 04:21:44| >> :120:6232:6232:
[monks data]
Attendance: 29,661
Stoke logo
Premier League
Sep 23, 2017 at 3pm UK
 
Chelsea logo

0-4

FT(HT: 0-2)
Morata (2', 78', 82'), Pedro (30')

Team News: Eden Hazard still on Chelsea bench

Team News: Hazard still on Chelsea bench
© SilverHub
Eden Hazard remains on the bench as Chelsea visit Stoke City.

Eden Hazard remains on the bench for Chelsea's visit to Stoke City this afternoon.

The Belgian started the EFL Cup victory over Nottingham Forest in midweek and had been in line for his first Premier League start of the season today following ankle surgery over the summer, but Antonio Conte has opted to keep faith with his front three of Willian, Alvaro Morata and Pedro.

In all, Antonio Conte makes three changes from the side that were held to a goalless draw by Arsenal last weekend ahead of a tricky trip to Atletico Madrid in the Champions League in four days' time.

Two of those changes come in defence, with David Luiz suspended following his red against the Gunners and Gary Cahill dropping to the bench as Andreas Christensen and Antonio Rudiger earn recalls and join Cesar Azpilicueta in the back three.

Cesc Fabregas is also made to start the game among the substitutes as summer signing Tiemoue Bakayoko comes into the midfield alongside Victor Moses, N'Golo Kante and Marcos Alonso following his run-out against Forest.

Micky Batshuayi scored a midweek hat-trick against the Championship side but starts on the bench today.

For the hosting Potters, Mark Hughes is forced to shuffle his pack and make two changes to the starting XI that lost 2-1 to Newcastle United last weekend.

Kurt Zouma is ineligible to feature against his parent club and Kevin Wimmer is out with a hamstring injury, meaning that Glen Johnson comes back into the fold and Erik Pieters drops back to join Bruno Martins Indi in the back three ahead of Jack Butland between the sticks.

Ramadan Sobhi is also recalled, linking up with Joe Allen, Darren Fletcher and Mame Biram Diouf, while the attacking threat comes from Xherdan Shaqiri, Eric-Maxim Choupo-Moting and Jese.

Stoke City: Butland; Johnson, Martins Indi, Pieters; Diouf, Fletcher, Allen, Ramadan; Shaqiri, Choupo-Moting; Jese
Subs: Grant; Berahino, Tymon, Afellay, Adam, Crouch, Souttar

Chelsea: Courtois; Azpilicueta, Christensen, Rudiger; Moses, Bakayoko, Kante, Alonso; Willian, Morata, Pedro
Subs: Caballero, Cahill, Zappacosta, Fabregas, Musonda, Hazard, Batshuayi

Keep up with all of the action from the bet365 this afternoon with Sports Mole's live text commentary here.

ID:307957: cacheID:307957:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:restore:6000:
Written by
Neil Wilkes
No Data Analysis info
Restore Data
Share this article now:
Chelsea's Cesar Azpilicueta clears from Arsenal's Alexis Sanchez during the FA Cup final on May 27, 2017
Read Next:
Combined XI: Chelsea vs. Arsenal
>
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Liverpool15113131131836
2Chelsea16104237191834
3Arsenal1686229151430
4Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest168442119228
5Manchester CityMan City168352823527
6Bournemouth167452421325
7Aston Villa167452425-125
8Fulham166642422224
9Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton166642625124
10Tottenham HotspurSpurs1672736191723
11Brentford167273230223
12Newcastle UnitedNewcastle166552321223
13Manchester UnitedMan Utd166462119222
14West Ham UnitedWest Ham165472129-819
15Crystal Palace163761721-416
16Everton153661421-715
17Leicester CityLeicester163582134-1314
18Ipswich TownIpswich162681628-1212
19Wolverhampton WanderersWolves1623112440-169
20Southampton1612131136-255


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!