When Chelsea lost 1-0 at Manchester City over the weekend, there was plenty of blame to go around. Some of it fell on Romelu Lukaku directly, and when you’re the most expensive player in club history, it comes with the territory.
And of course, when you start trouble at your current club, with your current manager, you can get singled out, in a bad way, by your boss. And that’s exactly what Thomas Tuchel did on Saturday. Now the situation is supposedly rectified, so what does that mean moving forward, starting with a trip to Brighton?
Chelsea FC at Brighton & Hove Albion FYIs
Kickoff: Tue, Jan 18, Falmer Stadium
Chelsea Starting XI Prediction: go here
Premier League podcast: go here
Premier League Form: Chelsea LDDWD Brighton DWDWL
Premier League Position: Chelsea 3rd, 43 pts Brighton 9th, 28 pts
Google Result Probability: Chelsea 55% Brighton 26% Draw 19%
Key Stat: Brighton have never led in any of their nine Premier League meetings with Chelsea.
We’re predicting Tuchel brings Big Rom off the bench in the clash with the Seagulls. And with M,ason Mount and Kai Havertz having not started at the weekend, the pair should probably get a first team assignment for this fixture.
Here’s the rest of the predicted 3-4-2-1 we’re going with.
Chelsea FC Starting XI Prediction at Brighton
Kepa; Azpilicueta, Silva, Rudiger; Pulisic, Kovacic, Jorginho, Alonso, Mount, Werner, Havertz
Prediction: Chelsea 2, Brighton 0
In 13 league meetings, Chelsea (W10 D3) have never lost to Brighton. It’s the highest number of matches that Chelsea have ever played against a single opponent in league play, and gone undefeated. We just don’t see that changing here.
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.”
He has regularly appeared in WGN, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune, and co-hosts the After Extra Time podcast. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram.