Chelsea welcome Southampton to Stamford Bridge on Saturday afternoon, as they look to restart their Premier League duties with a win following a shaky patch of form before the international break.
A 4-0 victory over Crystal Palace before the break masked over a penalties defeat in the Carabao Cup against Tottenham, with Frank Lampard's side struggling for consistency since the start of the new season.
Southampton head to London off the back of two wins and, despite not having the busiest of transfer windows, do look a threatening side under Ralph Hasenhuttl. A win for his side would see them leapfrog Chelsea in the Premier League table this weekend; the Blues sit in seventh on seven points, while Southampton are currently 11th on six points.
Where to Watch
When Is Kick Off? Saturday 17 October
What Time Is Kick Off? 15:00 (BST)
Where Is it Played? Stamford Bridge
TV Channel/Live Stream? BT Sport Box Office
Referee? Michael Jones
Team News
New goalkeeper Edouard Mendy made his Chelsea debut in their 4-0 victory against Palace, but a thigh injury picked up on international duty immediately sees him doubtful for the weekend. Kepa Arrizabalaga could be in line for a return to the team as a result.
Other new signings Hakim Ziyech and Ben Chilwell are also cause for concern. The latter pulled out of the England squad with a foot injury after making his debut against Palace, although the former did feature for Morocco during the international break, meaning he could be in contention for Saturday.
Chelsea's only other absentee is 19-year-old Billy Gilmour, who is still recovering from knee surgery.
For Southampton, Stuart Armstrong is unavailable having returned a positive coronavirus test, but summer signing Mohammed Salisu is ready and could make his debut following his transfer from Real Valladolid.
Predicted Lineups
Chelsea: Kepa; James, Silva, Zouma, Azpilicueta; Kante, Jorginho; Pulisic, Havertz, Werner; Abraham.
Southampton: McCarthy; Walker-Peters, Salisu, Vestergaard, Bertrand; Redmond, Ward-Prowse, Romeu, Djenepo; Adams, Ings.
Recent Form
Chelsea's win over Palace stands them in good stead and they did make it two wins on the bounce before the break, but it hasn't been the strongest start to the season.
An opening day victory over Brighton was followed up with a disappointing 2-0 defeat against Liverpool. They also slumped to a 3-3 draw with West Brom, with the influx of new faces at the club struggling to all come in and make the instant impact as hoped.
Southampton managed wins over Burnley and West Brom before the break, but were knocked out of the Carabao Cup early doors by Brentford in a disappointing 2-0 defeat.
Here are the previous five results for each side.
Chelsea
Chelsea 4-0 Crystal Palace (3/10)
Tottenham 1 (5) - (4) 1 Chelsea (29/9)
West Brom 3-3 Chelsea (26/9)
Chelsea 6-0 Barnsley (23/9)
Chelsea 0-2 Liverpool (20/9)
Southampton
Southampton 2-0 West Brom (4/10)
Burnley 0-1 Southampton (26/9)
Southampton 2-5 Tottenham (20/9)
Southampton 0-2 Brentford (16/9)
Crystal Palace 1-0 Southampton (12/9)
Prediction
The Premier League has thrown out some surprises and shock results in the opening few weeks of the season, but this one will likely be business as usual for Chelsea.
The Saints won't make things easy and will test Chelsea's defence with the pace and poaching of Danny Ings, but Lampard's side will be out for a fresh start after a nervy opening few weeks.
It's not a given, but the Blues will edge past in this one.
Prediction: Chelsea 2-1 Southampton
Source: 90min
