Welcome to fixture congestion! Lots of midweek matches coming up in the Premier League, and we’ll start the preview series by getting into Chelsea at Southampton FC now.
“All that matters is the reality and the moment now… and what will matter at Southampton is to find a way to win, step up individually and push the team,” said Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel when discussing the last days of the the summer transfer window, today at his press conference. “This is what we will do whether players come or not.”
Chelsea at Southampton FC FYIs
Kick off: 7:45pm, Tuesday August 31, St. Mary’s Stadium
Chelsea Team News: go here
After Extra Time Podcast: Spotify Apple
PL Position: Chelsea 6th, 7pts Southampton FC 13th, 4pts
Form Guide: Chelsea WLDW Southampton FC LWDL
Google Result Probability: Chelsea 61% Southampton 17% Draw 22%
Tuchel will have to decide whether or not to do some squad rotation here, given how a. they have lots of fixture congestion to deal with, and b. they played down a man for most of their win against Leicester on Saturday.
“What you can always expect at Southampton is a physical game, a running game and a high-intensity game,” the German continued. “So we need to recover well and be well prepared to have a chance to repeat what we did last season.”
We are still picking the oppressed Christian Pulisic to start here once again. Lord only knows what Tuchel has against him, but they really need to free him, and let him go to a team that appreciates him.
Chelsea FC Starting XI Prediction at Southampton FC
Kepa; Chilwell, Koulibaly, Silva, James; Loftus-Cheek, Kovacic, Mount; Pulisic, Havertz, Sterling
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 he co-hosts the After Extra Time podcast, part of Edge of the Crowd Network. Follow him and the website on Twitter and Instagram.