Chelsea continued their up and down season with another highlight tonight, beating Tottenham Hotspur 2-0. But there isn’t much time to relish the victory because another London derby comes this Sunday. Raheem Sterling, Robert Sanchez, Thiago Silva and Axel Disasi are just a few of the names on the ultra-long Blues injury list.
London Derby FYIs
Kickoff: Sun. May 5, 2pm, Stamford Bridge, London, UK
Team News: Chelsea Part 1 Chelsea Part 2 West Ham
Starting XI Predictions: Chelsea West Ham
Transatlantic Passage: How the Premier League Redefined Soccer in America: LINK
Google Result Probability: Chelsea FC 59% West Ham United 21% Draw 20%
PL Form, Position: West Ham United DLLWD, 48 pts, 8th Chelsea FC DLWDW, 49 pts, 9th
Blues Team News
Once again it is going to take two full posts to go through it all. Sterling is a doubt for Sunday with a lower back problem.
Sterling has been largely a disappointment during his time at Chelsea. Meanwhile No. 1 goalkeeper Robert Sanchez (undisclosed issue) is still in partial team training, with no return date set.
We’re also not sure what is going on with the potential return of Axel Disasi, who is very likely to miss out here, due to an unspecified knock.
Moving on, Thiago Silva has a groin problem that leaves him out indefinitely.
Enzo Fernandez (groin), Wesley Fofana (knee) and Romeo Lavia (thigh) all remain out for the season, so obviously nothing new to report there. We’ll be back shortly with more information on the rest of the injured brigade.
Paul M. Banks is the Founding Editor of The Sports Bank. He’s also the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” and “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”
He currently contributes to Ravens Wire, part of the USA Today SMG’s NFL Wire Network and the Internet Baseball Writers Association of America. His past bylines include the New York Daily News, Sports Illustrated, Chicago Tribune and the Washington Times. You can follow him on Twitter.