Chelsea will be looking to build on their impressive victory over Tottenham when they face Southampton at Stamford Bridge on Boxing Day. The Blues are fourth, four points clear of fifth-place Sheffield United, while Southampton are sitting just outside the relegation zone.
Willian bagged a brace in Chelsea’s previous outing. Frank Lampard’s side completely dominated against Spurs, so they will be confident of overcoming a struggling Southampton team.
However, following a dismal start to the 2019/20 campaign, Saints have now won three of their last five league games and have moved out of the bottom three.
A Danny Ings double helped Saints to claim a vital win over fellow relegation strugglers Aston Villa in the previous round, while Jack Stephens also scored a rare goal for Ralph Hasenhuttl’s side.
Southampton have now won five of their 18 league games this term, but they must continue to build on their recent good form if they want to steer further clear of the drop zone.
Remarkably, Danny Ings is the division’s joint second-highest scorer with 11 goals to his name. He has scored more than half of his team’s league goals this season.
Chelsea striker Tammy Abraham had also netted 11 league goals so far, but the Blues have managed to score 33 goals compared to Southampton’s 21.
The Blues have solidified a spot in the Champions League places for now. After a sticky spell, Lampard’s men appear to be back to their best.
Chelsea have won 10 of their 18 league games this season, but with just two draws to their name, they have lost six. This is the highest number of defeats any team has suffered in the top eight.
Still, Chelsea have not lost against Southampton in their last nine meetings – winning eight and drawing one.
Saints last beat Chelsea in 2015, while the Blues have scored over 1.5 goals in seven of their last nine matches against the south coast side.
In their most recent meeting, Chelsea claimed a 4-1 victory. It’s no surprise that Danny Ings and Tammy Abraham both found the back of the net on that occasion.
Chelsea midfielder Matteo Kovacic will be unavailable for selection after picking up five yellow cards this season, but Lampard has no fresh injury worries.
Southampton will be hoping Moussa Djenepo recovers from a hamstring injury in time to feature on Thursday, while Kevin Danso could also return to the team.
Chelsea haven’t been too solid defensively this season, so Southampton will fancy their chances of scoring. However, the home side should outscore their opponents.
Forebet predicts that Chelsea will claim all three points in a game that could see over 3.5 goals.