On Sky
Chelsea head into their third game of the season still looking for a first win.
With only one point after Week 2, the visit to the Hawthorns, a fixture which has had dire ramifications for recent Chelsea managers André Villas Boas and Roberto di Matteo, couldn’t have come at a trickier time.
The two were ousted soon after defeats to the Baggies and, while the same fate most certainly does not await José Mourinho, after all the common denominator between the two, one Fernando Torres is no more, the champions could still have had better luck with the fixture schedule.
The buzz created by the arrivals of Baba Rahman and Pedro Rodríguez will certainly lift everyone, although Mourinho was coy when asked about their availability for Sunday.
Tony Pulis, whose team’s slow start to the season could also do with a fillip, has beaten Mourinho with Crystal Palace and West Brom in the last 16 months, and will be baying for more blood.
It seems like a stage is set for a tasty Sunday afternoon encounter with both managers searching for their first win of the season.
Albion won the corresponding fixture 3-0 last season.
Vital Quotes:
Tony Pulis:
“It’s wonderful for me to be in the Premier Leagueand work against top managers, there’s no better manager in the world than Jose Mourinho and it’s a privilege.”
Jose Mourinho:
“We normally train very well but this week we train better than ever. Why? Because we’re not happy with the results.”
Bonus:
A non-committal Mourinho on whether Terry will start this weekend or not:
“Maybe…normally he plays, so why not?”
West Bromwich Albion Team News:
Pulis has a fully fit squad for this fixture, with Tottenham target Saido Berahino available for selection having seen a bid from the North Londoners for him turned down.
West Bromwich Albion (from):Myhill, Rose, Chester, Dawson, Gamboa, Lescott, McAuley, O’Neil, Olsson, Pocognoli, Brunt, Fletcher, Gardner, Gnabry, McClean, McManaman, Morrison, Sessegnon, Yacob, Anichebe, Berahino,Ideye, Lambert, Nabi, Rondon.
Player to watch: Saido Berahino
Two goals villain in the 3-0 defeat of Chelsea in the corresponding fixture last season and scorer of 20 goals overall, he’s your typical underrated yet technical modern forward/striker who is comfortable playing in tight spaces, and often singlehandedly decide the outcome of a match. Here’s what Pulis had to say amid rumours linking him with a £20m move to Spurs, “I just had a chat with him on the pitch…I told him not to get wrapped up in all the hype, concentrate on his football…God has given him a great gift and he can’t waste it.” A great gift indeed, and one the Chelsea back four can’t afford to take their eyes off!
Chelsea Team News:
Although it’s not clear at this point which Chelsea medical team will share the dugout with Mourinho or which new signing will be getting his debut in the Black Country, we are fairly certain the team will remain largely the same with the team that lost 3-0 away to Man City last Sunday, with Courtois regaining his No.1 spot having served his one match suspension and maybe a few tweak here and there in the attacking options. Whether Terry comes back into the team or Zouma starts ahead of the Chelsea captain is not very clear in this moment, although I can’t see why Mourinho will not start his favourite oldie. Also, you can expect to see Ivanovic at right back, as usual, while hoping otherwise.
There are no new injuries to report other than Oscar(calf) and Moses(groin).
Chelsea (from):Begovic, Blackman, Courtois, Azpilicueta, Cahill, Ivanovic, Rahman, Terry, Zouma, Cuadrado, Fabregas, Hazard, Loftus-Cheek, Matic, Mikel, Ramires, Traore, Willian, Costa, Falcao, Pedro, Remy.
Player to watch: Eden Hazard
The PFA and Chelsea Player of the Year has fallen below his standards and has not lived up to expectations. In the two matches he’s played so far, he’s done nothing of note, although you’d be careless to bet against the Chelsea No.10 turning it all on at the Hawthorns with a display befitting his status. I’m 100% certain Pulis himself and his defenders will be keenly watching the Belgian wizard.
Match Facts & Stats
Opta stats
? West Brom beat Chelsea 3-0 at home last season; it was the joint-heaviest defeat that Jose Mourinho has ever suffered in the Premier League.
However, no team has beaten West Brom more often in the Premier League than Chelsea (13 wins, level with Arsenal).
? Jose Mourinho’s last six Premier League defeats have come against a manager who has a surname starting in P (Pulis, Poyet, Pardew, Pochettino, Pulis, Pellegrini).
? Tony Pulis has won two Premier League games against Jose Mourinho – no manager has won three PL games against the Portuguese.
? Both Roberto Di Matteo and Andre Villas-Boas managed their last Premier League game as Chelsea boss against WBA at The Hawthorns before they were sacked.
? No team has won the top-flight title after gaining exactly one point from their opening two games since Liverpool in 1981-82.
? Chelsea have only ever lost back-to-back Premier League games under Mourinho once before; this coming in May 2006 (when Chelsea had already won the title).
? Chelsea have allowed their opponents a league-high 18 shots on target so far in the 2015-16 Premier League.
? The Baggies have had more possession than their opponent in just one of their last 19 Premier League matches and have the lowest average so far in 2015-16 (33.1%).
? Seventeen of Saido Berahino’s 20 competitive goals for West Brom in 2014-15 came at The Hawthorns (85%), including two in a 3-0 PL win over Chelsea in May.
Ref Watch:
Mark Clattenburg
Match Prediction:
1-3. Chelsea.
Next Fixtures:
Crystal Palace (H)Aug 29 2015 3:00PM.Barclays Premier League