Chelsea vs Schalke 04 Preview
Chelsea are touted to win the UEFA Champions League, and are expected to swamp the rest of the trophies up for grabs this season, as their team has the strength in terms of squad depth and the players to take them towards glory. Players such as Eden Hazard, Diego Costa, Thibaut Courtois, Oscar and Nemanja Matic have turned into Chelsea’s most dependable players, as they have assumed the posts held by the senior players such as Frank Lampard or Ashley Cole, who have moved on; or like Petr Cech or Didier Drogba, who have been given mentorship roles and have been largely sidelined; or like John Terry and Branislov Ivanovich, who are grooming up the other talented players and are moulding them into the Chelsea way. With Jose Mourinho as the coach pulling the strings, each team member has a defined role, which is spurring the team forward.
Last season, Jose levied the blame on a largely win less campaign on the fact that his team had no striker, and that the team consisted of a group of talented players who needed to gel together to put in more consistent performances. Chelsea cane close to winning the Premier League, but lackadaisical performances in relatively easier fixtures set them back. This season, with the additions of Diego Costa, Loic Remy and a returning Didier Drogba to boost a fledgling strike-force of Fernando Torres, Demba Ba and Romelu Lukaku who have departed the club, Jose has the strikers capable enough of lifting the team and producing the end product (read: goals) that can win Chelsea the necessary games. All of the strikers are in form, with Costa grabbing 7 goals in 4 games, Remy getting a goal on debut and Drogba rolling back the years every time he is subbed on. The other talented players in the team have improved as a team, and the introduction of Fabregas has catalysed the team on the path forward.
Schalke, on the other hand, have held on to their players, and have a good attack and a good defence. However, injuries to important players in defence such as Matip, Kolasinac and Howedes have laid them low. Against a team like Chelsea, their defence will tremble even further. Their attack has been in good form, with Draxler, Huntelaar and Kevin-Prince Boateng looking menacing. Kevin-Prince Boateng will be key for Schalke to spring a surprise, as he can score with deadly long and short-range shots and can take down opposing players. Schalke will look to perform well against the home team, but will be happy to get a point and a not-very-negative goal difference at the end of the game. Schalke will want an end such as the story of David and Goliath, but their hopes might remain unfulfilled against a focused Chelsea team that wants to win everything in sight.
Chelsea might want to rotate their players, as they will have to battle Manchester City over the weekend, which will be another cracker of a game, for which the rested players from today’s game will need to be in top shape to beat the reigning Premier League champions and show that they are more than capable of taking over the mantle by the end of the season. Players such as Diego Costa, Thibaut Courtois, John Terry, Cesc Fabregas and Nemanja Matic might not feature tonight, which will give other bit-part players such as Ramires, Loic Remy, Kurt Zouma and Petr Cech with a good-enough chance to impress everyone with their performances today.
Predicted Chelsea lineup (4-2-3-1): Petr Cech – Cesar Azpilicueta, Branislov Ivanovic/John Terry, Kurt Zouma/Nathan Ake, Filipe Luis – Ramires, John Obi Mikel/Nemanja Matic – Mohammed Salah, Oscar, Andre Schürrle/Willian – Loic Remy
Prediction – Easy win for the London side
Chelsea 3 Schalke 0