By the time Chelsea FC take to the pitch, at home against Norwich City, they might see themselves in fifth place. It was previously thought, by most who are paying attention that Manchester City would have their UCL ban upheld, and their appeal denied.
Thus fifth place in the table would be enough for Chelsea, or Leicester City or Manchester United or whomever, to get into Europe next season. Not so, as City’s two year UEFA ban has been overturned and the race for the top four just got much more interesting. The good news for the Blues is that next match, tomorrow night, is probably the easiest (at least on paper) possible.
If you’re looking to bet on this game, you’ll see that Chelsea are heavy favorites. You might want to bet at newcasinos-au.com/casinos/real-money instead of doing some football betting here. The safe money bet on the Blues can be had at a price of -770, while a draw is priced at +800. If you’re feeling adventurous, then you take the big time long shot Canaries at +1900.
Chelsea will look to get back to their winning ways, and potentially regain confidence for the rest of the run in on Wednesday. Facing an already relegated, bottom of the barrel side in Norwich, is the best way to do that. Of course, they won’t be going anywhere, whether they finish in the top four or not, if they don’t improve their shoddy defending.
Predicted Starting Lineup for Chelsea FC (4-3-3) vs Norwich City:
Kepa; James, Christensen, Rudiger, Azpilicueta; Mount, Kovacic, Barkley; Pulisic, Giroud, Willian
Chelsea FC vs Norwich City FYIs
Kickoff: Tues July 14 8:15 BST, Stamford Bridge
Team News for both sides: Go to this link
TV: Sky Sports (UK), NBCSN (US)
Referee: Jonathan Moss
Position: Chelsea FC 60 points, 3rd Norwich City 21 points, dead last, relegated
Premier League Form Guide: Chelsea FC WWLWW Norwich City LLLLL
Prediction: Chelsea FC 3, Norwich City 0
Given the new sense of urgency for the Blues, and how the Canaries look like a side that won’t be winning a match again this season, the pick here is a no brainer.
Paul M. Banks runs The Sports Bank.net, which is partnered with News Now. Banks, the author of “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry,” regularly contributes to WGN TV, Sports Illustrated, Chicago Now and SB Nation.
You can follow Banks, a former writer for Chicago Tribune.com, on Twitter and his cat on Instagram.