After a dismal couple of weeks that included a humbling defeat to Liverpool and a 3-3 thriller at West Brom, Chelsea managed to bounce back in emphatic fashion as a professional second half performance earned them a 4-0 win over Crystal Palace. SportyBet offers the best odds for this meeting.
Make no mistake though, this Blues outfit are far from the finished product. They have conceded six goals in their opening four games and the three first half goals they conceded at the Hawthorns speaks volumes of their defensive problems. On the NairaBet platform, you can choose your bet on a match using data from the best sports analysts.
Fortunately for Frank Lampard, their dazzling array of attacking talent can often make up for their continuing defensive issues. They have scored ten league goals already this season and. with seven wins from their last eight home games in the top flight, they will be confident of a result on Sunday.
Ings on fire for Saints
Southampton are an improving side though. After opening the season with two consecutive defeats, the Saints’ 2-0 win over West Brom before the international break made it back-to-back wins, although their 5-2 demolition at home to Spurs is an ominous sign of how they fare when faced with top quality attackers.
That being said, they still managed to score twice in that heavy defeat thanks to the goalscoring prowess of Danny Ings. The Saints’ star frontman has scored three goals this season and has netted in six of his last nine top flight appearances, so if anybody can take advantage of Chelsea’s potentially calamitous defence it’s him.
Goals on the agenda at Stamford Bridge
All the signs point towards an abundance of goals at Stamford Bridge. Three of Chelsea’s four league games so far have featured at least four goals, while Southampton’s last meeting with an elite club saw the net bulge seven times so we’re backing over 3.5 goals here.
In the end we expect Chelsea’s fine home record to deliver the three points to Lampard. Their only dropped points in their last eight home league games came against Liverpool and, after scoring three or more goals in three of their four league games this season, backing a 3-1 correct score prediction looks a good option.
Chelsea injuries and team news
Billy Gilmour remains sidelined for Chelsea, but the main concern are the injuries picked up by N’Golo Kante and Ben Chilwell on international duty. The pair are major doubts ahead of this game, leaving room for Marcos Alonso and Mateo Kovacic to drop into the starting lineup.
New goalkeeper Edouard Mendy is also expected to miss out after he was injured for Senegal, so the out of form Kepa could be back between the sticks. On the plus side, Hakim Ziyech could be in line for a debut and Christian Pulisic is set to return after his injury layoff.
