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This game appears set to go ahead despite the postponement of Man City’s clash with Everton, though it remains unclear exactly whether any players beyond Kyle Walker and Gabriel Jesus have tested positive for the visitors.
Chelsea could have done with a moment to regroup themselves, though for different reasons following a disappointing spell that’s seen them win just once in six across all competitions.
Even the 3-0 win over West Ham looked better on paper as Tammy Abraham’s late brace from the bench added gloss to the scoreline.
That remains Chelsea’s sole clean sheet in seven appearances and owed more to West Ham’s lack of cutting edge than any staunch rearguard action.
In a boost to the Blues’ defensive cause, Frank Lampard rested first-choice centre-back duo Kurt Zouma and Thiago Silva against Aston Villa last time out and both will return to the team here.
However, Chelsea’s attack is blunted down the right-hand side as attacking full-back Reece James and winger Hakim Ziyech both remain injury doubts.
Lampard also has further decisions to make in attack and Christian Pulisic may well have to settle for a place on the bench, given the number of minutes he’s played of late and a troubled hamstring history since arriving in West London.
There’s also a big question as to whether Lampard sticks with expensive German duo Timo Werner and Kai Havertz, with the former being outshone by back-up options Abraham and especially Olivier Giroud, despite that duo’s limited game-time.
Under 2.5 Goals
Man City have lost just once in 20 appearances across all competitions and are currently enjoying a run of seven wins from 10 unbeaten games, conceding just two goals across this more recent spell.
The transformation at the back appears to be a consequence of a new centre-back pairing of Ruben Dias and John Stones, though City’s output certainly has taken a hit.
There have now been fewer than three goals in nine of City’s last 12 in all competitions, while in the league alone, a massive 11 of 12 have gone under that same threshold.
Sergio Aguero may be back in the fold, but with limited time to get back up to speed and now Gabriel Jesus absent, this game may not properly ignite.
Indeed, Lampard can’t afford another defensive shocker and will be happy to keep this encounter tight.
Although Chelsea aren’t in the best place right now, they remain a tough proposition at Stamford Bridge where they’ve lost just once in 18 appearances across all competitions since March, drawing five of the last nine.
Meanwhile, Man City have won just five of their last 10 on the road, and just two of six road trips in the league, and with the potential for further missing players we’ll avoid the match outcome.
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ODDS ARE CORRECT AS OF 31/12/2020 HOWEVER ARE SUBJECT TO FLUCTUATIONS
