English Premier
2021-10-02 - Chelsea vs Southampton
A Sports Betting Pick by Auls
Football: English Premier League
Saturday 2nd October 2021 - Kick Off 3pm
Chelsea
Thomas Tuchel is unlikely to be questioned too deeply by the Chelsea fans after guiding the team to their second ever European Cup, but back to back defeats will always put pressure on a team to respond. Losing to Manchester City and Juventus is nothing to be ashamed about, but Tuchel may be the first to admit that he would have expected more from his Chelsea team in those defeats.
They are 3rd in the Premier League table after losing 0-1 to Manchester City at Stamford Bridge last Saturday, but Chelsea's rivals also stumbled in the main and that means they are only a point behind leaders Liverpool. The Blues have a 2-0-1 record at home in the Premier League where Chelsea have scored 6 goals and conceded just the once.
Chelsea won their first 3 games in all competitions out of the September international break, but they have since needed Penalties to see off Aston Villa in the League Cup Third and followed up with those defeats to Manchester City and Juventus. They had previously won 3 Premier League games in a row at Stamford Bridge, but that run was ended in their last fixture here.
Reece James, N'Golo Kante and Christian Pulisic are expected to miss out, but Mason Mount could be available.
Southampton
There have been some positive results for Southampton this season, but the 0-1 home defeat to Wolves would have hurt and they are still chasing their first Premier League win of the season. Ralph Hasenhuttl's team have earned draws with both Manchester United and Manchester City this season and the manager will be looking for another resilient display from his team.
The Saints have earned 4 points in the Premier League this season, but they are down in 16th place in the table. They have a 0-2-1 record away from St Mary's in the Premier League and Southampton have scored 3 goals and conceded 5 in those games.
Southampton had been unbeaten in 6 games in all competitions, but 5 of those fixtures had ended in draws. One of those came in the League Cup Third Round at Sheffield United, but Southampton won that match on Penalties, although the unbeaten run was ended by Wolves last Sunday. Southampton had lost 6 away Premier League games in a row, but they have since drawn 2-2 at Newcastle United and 0-0 at Manchester City.
Stuart Armstrong and Theo Walcott are both hoping to return to the squad this weekend.
Head to Head
Both Premier League games between these teams ended in draws last season.
Chelsea do not have the best recent home record against Southampton- they have won just 2 of their last 7 at Stamford Bridge against this opponent and none of the last 3.
Prediction
In recent seasons Southampton have matched up pretty well with Chelsea and it has seen them pick up plenty of positive results against this opponent. They may be encouraged by the fact that Chelsea have lost back to back fixtures, although Ralph Hasenhuttl has to also expect there will be a reaction from the hosts.
The early season results had been decent as far as Chelsea were concerned, but there has been this feeling that they have not been playing as well as they would have liked. Thomas Tuchel will certainly not be happy with some of the attacking displays Chelsea have produced and he will be hoping that Mason Mount can return to offer a creative edge.
No one will dispute the talent that Chelsea have and you have to believe they will begin to get things right, but they look plenty short considering the form of the last week.
Southampton have only lost 2 of their last 7 games at Stamford Bridge and they have already secured draws with the likes of Manchester United and Manchester City this season. Two weeks ago they showed plenty of resiliency to earn a point at the Etihad Stadium, but Southampton have given up some big chances in those draws and that should be encouragement for Chelsea.
It might be a tighter match than expected and Southampton are likely to pose problems from set pieces. However, the feeling is that they are going to want to defend deep and try and catch Chelsea on the counter-attack and it may mean The Saints struggle to create enough to win this game.
Chelsea are not likely to win without some drama on the day, but I do think they will do just enough to do that. They have not played well in their last two games, but The Blues should have enough defensive strength to set their team up for a victory, although it may be a tense atmosphere in West London right through to 5pm on Saturday afternoon.
Romelu Lukaku has had a couple of quiet games, but the big Belgian striker could make the difference for Chelsea. Another home clean sheet could be earned too as Chelsea secure three points that may see them top the Premier League table over the next two weeks.
The Statistics :
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The Pick :
Chelsea 1-0 Southampton
