Kovacic And Alonso To Start, Jorginho And Niguez On The Bench: Chelsea’s Predicted XI To Face Norwich

Content Editor

2 years ago

Categories: Chelsea News, Galleries, Match Previews

Tags: Chelsea, Marcos Alonso, Mateo Kovacic, norwich

After a very positive result at Turf Moor at the weekend, Chelsea will be looking to pick up some momentum in the Premier League with another victory against Norwich on Thursday.

With the best part of five days’ preparation, manager Thomas Tuchel will probably be keen to keep the same lineup that knocked over Burnley.

However, with Newcastle also coming up on Sunday, you can’t rule out a bit of rotation in order to maintain some fresh legs among the players.

Press the next page as we predict the Blues’ starting lineup for the match at Carrow Road.

GK – Edouard Mendy

Wasn’t at his best against Burnley, and he would have breathed a sigh of relief when Dwight McNeil failed to capitalise on his poor punch in the first half.

Mendy’s off-days are a rarity, though, and you won’t expect him to be called into action that often versus Norwich.

RWB – Reece James

The best player on the pitch at Turf Moor at the weekend and it’s clear for anyone to see what Chelsea have been missing in his absence.

James really can do everything. He took his goal superbly well, whilst he delivered an excellent cross for Kai Havertz’s second. He will be a key creative outlet once more on Thursday.

CB – Trevoh Chalobah

Captain Cesar Azpilicueta is back in training after recovering from a knock he picked up in the Carabao Cup final so the Spaniard is an option to replace Chalobah.

Andreas Christensen could also come into consideration but Tuchel may keep faith with Chalobah, who has done very little wrong since coming back into the starting eleven.

CB – Thiago Silva

The Brazilian legend continues to belie his years, with another goal-line clearance at Burnley to go with the one he managed versus Liverpool a week earlier.

Silva is the first name on the teamsheet, and you wouldn’t bet against him emulating Paolo Maldini by playing in top-flight football until he is 40.

CB – Antonio Rudiger

The German actually had a pretty wobbly first half at Turf Moor, as he had trouble dealing with the lively Aaron Lennon who, surprisingly still looks sharp at 34 years of age.

Rudiger got things together after the interval, and you would expect him to have the beating of Norwich’s forwards on Thursday night.

LWB – Marcos Alonso

Saul Niguez didn’t actually look that bad playing as a wingback against Burnley, and he could have even scored early on in the match.

Tuchel, therefore, has a decision to make with Alonso having returned to training. The Spaniard does generally offer more going forward and he should get some joy against the Canaries.

CM – Mateo Kovacic

Jorginho looked off the pace on Saturday, and Tuchel may consider recalling Kovacic who does tend to excel in games away from Stamford Bridge where there is more space to run into.

The Croatian has been one of the Blues’ best players this season and he is unlikely to let anyone down if he starts at Carrow Road.

CM – N’Golo Kante

The Frenchman had to get through a lot of work in the first half against Burnley, and he was able to put out most of the fires by retrieving the ball and making some lung-bursting runs forward.

Kante should have the beating of a Norwich midfield, which will be without Billy Gilmour, who is unable to face his parent club.

RW – Mason Mount

Flitted in and out of the game at Turf Moor but he does combine well with James on the right-hand side of the pitch.

With Callum Hudson-Odoi sidelined with injury, and Hakim Ziyech having only just recovered from his own fitness issues, Mount could keep his place in the starting lineup for now.

CF – Kai Havertz

The German was anonymous in the first half, as Burnley managed to cut him off from getting any service, but all that changed after the interval.

Havertz’s brace will do him the world of good and it should help him keep his place ahead of Romelu Lukaku for the Norwich game.

LW – Christian Pulisic

The American’s performance against Burnley is exactly what we want to see from him. He got on the ball regularly and was heavily involved in securing the 4-0 victory, creating Havertz’s first and getting on the scoresheet himself with a neat finish.

Consistency, both in terms of fitness and performance, is now required from Pulisic. Hopefully, we’ll see another good display on Thursday.