Chelsea vs Southampton: Premier League Match Preview, Predicted Line-ups and Dream11 Predictions

Chelsea vs Southampton is the next match in the Premier League as Chelsea look to bounce back after a thrashing in the hands of Brentford, with travel to the St. Mary's Stadium to face Southampton on Saturday.

It's matchday! 🤝

Time for #SouChe! 🤙 pic.twitter.com/ToHP2l067f

— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) April 9, 2022

Chelsea vs Southampton: Match Preview:

Both Brentford and Real Madrid have battered Thomas Tuchel's team in recent days and the German risks the wheels coming off of what remains of this season amid all of the uncertainty behind the scenes.

Tuchel has admitted their Champions League tie with Madrid is now all but over and, as a result, Chelsea's Premier League form need arresting.

While it would be unlikely to see them drop out of the top four, the manner of their recent losses would suggest there is an awful lot to get right until the European champions can rest easy on that front.

Southampton, meanwhile, have not won in five games across all competitions.

Team News:

Southampton:

While Valentino Livramento will relish the chance to strut his stuff against his old club, Southampton will be without Blues loanee Armando Broja for the meeting with his parent club.

The Saints have Lyanco still missing while Alex McCarthy seeks to make himself available following a thigh issue, but Fraser Forster's spot is not in any real danger either way, and Shane Long will need assessing due to ankle pain.

Adam Armstrong has been consigned to the bench more often than not due to Broja's form but ought to rejoin the attack alongside Che Adams, while Stuart Armstrong will also eye a recall to the first XI.

Chelsea:

Meanwhile, Chelsea continue to cope without long-term ACL absentee Ben Chilwell and Callum Hudson-Odoi, with the latter facing a race against time to recover from Achilles and back problems in time for the second leg with Real.

Tuchel is also sweating over the fitnesses of Romelu Lukaku and Hakim Ziyech, and the quick turnaround and manner of defeat will certainly lead to some alterations here, with Thiago Silva potentially being rested ahead of the trip to Madrid.

Marcos Alonso, Mateo Kovacic and Trevoh Chalobah are all candidates to return for the first XI, while Lukaku – if he is passed fit – could even earn a rare start if big-game player Havertz is saved for the Bernabeu trip.

Chelsea vs Southampton: Head to Head:

The two Southern England rivals have locked horns 110 times across all competitions. Chelsea lead 48-31 in wins while 31 games have ended in draws.

This will be the third meeting between the two sides this season, with Chelsea emerging victorious in the two games played at Stamford Bridge. Chelsea knocked the Saints out of the Carabao Cup on penalties in October.

Recent performances in all competitions:

Chelsea:

1-0 win over Newcastle United

2-1 win over Lille

2-0 win over Middlesbrough

4-1 loss against Brentford

3-1 loss against Real Madrid

Southampton:

4-0 loss against Aston Villa

2-1 loss against Newcastle United

2-1 loss against Watford

4-1 loss against Manchester City

1-1 draw against Leeds United

Chelsea vs Southampton: Predicted Line-ups:

Southampton:Forster; Livramento, Salisu, Bednarek, Walker-Peters; Ward-Prowse, Romeu, Diallo; S. Armstrong; Adams, A. Armstrong

Chelsea:Mendy; Christensen, Chalobah, Rudiger; Azpilicueta, Kovacic, Jorginho, Alonso; Ziyech, Lukaku, Pulisic

CHE vs SOU: Dream11 Predictions: