Chelsea face Aston Villa in the Premier League on Sunday afternoon at Villa Park, and Graham Potter has plenty of selection decisions to make.
Graham Potter’s side swap the San Siro for Villa Park as they return to domestic action following their excellent 2-0 win over AC Milan in the Champions League on Tuesday night.
Chelsea have won four games in a row in all competitions and confidence is sky high since Potter took over at Stamford Bridge last month.
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The 47-year-old though has had to deal with injury problems. Edouard Mendy has only just returned, while Wesley Fofana, N’Golo Kante and Reece James are out for a considerable amount of time, varying from many weeks to many months.
With Chelsea having a busy fixture schedule until the World Cup break, Potter needs to utilise the whole of his squad to ensure they stay fully fit and fresh, as well as reducing the chance of any injuries to add to their current absentees in the treatment room.
“Well, I think we have quite a few games in a short space of time,” said Potter, via football.london, when asked about being able to give every player an opportunity to impress following his arrival.
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“So we’ve had to use the group as wisely as possible, which we’ve done. I’ve been really impressed with the guys, their attitudes have been fantastic. There are still a few lads that haven’t had game time but that isn’t because they’ve done anything wrong, they can field eleven.
"So the main focus now is to go game to game and keep progressing. I don’t think we’re at the maximum in terms of where the team is at, we’re not at the limit and there is more to come from the team and individuals. So always keep an open mind and we will see.”
Ahead of playing Brentford next Wednesday, Potter will look to freshen his side up through enforced changes, as well as slight tweaks on Sunday at Villa Park.
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Predicted Chelsea XI to face Aston Villa: Kepa, Azpilicueta, Chalobah, Silva, Cucurella, Jorginho, Loftus-Cheek, Gallagher, Sterling, Aubameyang, Pulisic
Kepa looks set to keep his place in goal after three consecutive clean sheets.
Cesar Azpilicueta could be handed a rare start following the injury to James.
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Potter may look to manage Thiago Silva’s minutes, but the 38-year-old defender will be keen to continue as Chelsea look to maintain their impressive defensive run.
Ben Chilwell could be given a rest, while Mason Mount had a precautionary scan, which came back all clear, on Saturday on his thigh which may see Potter avoid risking the 23-year-old from the start on Sunday.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang is starting to pick up his form and is expected to lead the line for Chelsea again.
Topics: Chelsea, Premier League, Football, Aston Villa
Matthew Debono