By Betsefy
Chelsea are again expected to be without a number of first-team players for Saturday’s key Premier League contest with West Ham United at the London Stadium.
Ben Chilwell and Mateo Kovacic will again definitely be absent for the Blues, while Trevor Chalobah is expected to miss out with the hamstring injury that he picked up in Wednesday’s 2-1 win at Watford.
Reece James and N’Golo Kante were also absent against the Hornets, with the former struggling to overcome a foot problem and the latter battling a knee issue.
It seems unlikely that head coach Thomas Tuchel will take any risks with the pair, so the league leaders could be without five first-team players for the contest with the Hammers.
There are still expected to be changes from the side that started on Wednesday, though, with Thiago Silva, Romelu Lukaku and Jorginho in line to feature from the start.
Hakim Ziyech came off the bench to score against Watford, but the attacker could again find himself on the bench with the likes of Timo Werner and Ross Barkley.
Callum Hudson-Odoi is an option for the left-sided wing-back position, should Tuchel decide to rest Marcos Alonso, although it seems likely that the Spaniard will continue in the starting XI for this match.
Chelsea possible starting lineup: Mendy; Christensen, Silva, Rudiger; Azpilicueta, Loftus-Cheek, Jorginho, Alonso; Mount, Lukaku, Havertz
