As Thomas Tuchel prepares for the visit of Marcelo Bielsa’s side tomorrow, the Blues boss said he’s “concerned” about Chelsea’s “unusual” run of form. This Chelsea side is in a bit of a mini-slump, as they dropped points from the last two fixtures, one domestic, the other continental.
Chelsea progressed through to the Champions League knockout round, but blew a chance at winning the group. They’ve also fallen out of the top spot in the Premier League table.
Leeds United at Chelsea FYIs:
Kick-off time: 3PM GMT, 11th December 2021
Chelsea Starting XI Prediction: go here
PL Position: Leeds United 15th, 16pts Chelsea FC 3rd, 33pts
Premier League Preview Pod: go here
PL Form Guide: Leeds United DWDLD Chelsea FC LWDWD
“For me it’s a very short period where we are a bit concerned, or not happy with how we approach things,” Tuchel said to a press conference on Friday.
“We have the feeling we can do better, but for me it is not a long period. It started in [the 2-1 win at] Watford, but even there we had a lot of changes. I’m aware that maybe things don’t look so precise or smooth.
“We were organized but I was surprised it was the first time we were not physically and mentally ready to play a Premier League match. That was a surprise there.
“West Ham was in general another particular match where played well in the first half and had a good reaction after the equalizer.
“It’s the four times we gave away the lead that concerns me because it’s very unusual. I don’t want to make it bigger than it is but I also don’t want to look away.”
Chelsea Team News
Chelsea will continue to be without the services of several key players, including N’Golo Kante (knee), Mateo Kovacic, Ben Chilwell (knee) and Trevoh Chalobah (hamstring)
There is good news, however, with Jorginho (back) and Ruben Loftus-Cheek (unspecified) having been passed fit to feature.
Forecasting the Fixture
The bookies see Chelsea at (-400) to win, while the Google Result Probability gives them a 78% to win here. Leeds are backed to the tune of (+1000) and 8%. Meanwhile a draw is priced at +450, with an occurrence probability of 14%.
Paul M. Banks is the owner/manager of The Bank (TheSportsBank.Net) and author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” as well as “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”
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