Even though Old Trafford isn’t the fortress it once was under Sir Alex Ferguson, a trip to face Manchester United in your first competitive match in charge is still a very stern test for Chelsea boss Frank Lampard.

He will have to go into the game without one of the Blues’ key defenders from last season in Antonio Rudiger. The German performed consistently well last campaign but a knee injury will mean he will miss the opening weeks of the season.

It means Lampard will have a key decision to make over who should start in the heart of defence for a fixture where a solid backline will be essential to getting the three points.

From what we have seen in preseason, it’s likely that David Luiz will be one of the first names of the teamsheet having played the most minutes out of any player during the tour of Japan. It is, therefore, likely to be a battle for who will partner the Brazilian for the game against United.

Even though Lampard is a fan of the player, minutes have been few and far between for Fikayo Tomori, and there has been talk that he could be offloaded on loan once again, with Everton said to be a possible destination.

If that does happen before August 8th, it is likely that Lampard will be deciding between Kurt Zouma and Andreas Christensen for the second centre-back position.

Going by preseason, you have to feel the Frenchman has the slight edge over the Dane. We said in a blog post earlier this month that Zouma had one last opportunity to grab a first-team place at Stamford Bridge, and he seems to be taking his chance.

Christensen, on the other hand, very much has it all to do. He has certainly not been bad during his matches in preseason so far, but he hasn’t stood out, unlike Zouma.

In terms of numbers, the pair are pretty similar. They both roughly average the same number of tackles per 90 minutes, with Christensen more successful at winning the ball.

Zouma is, though, slightly superior in the air, winning more aerial duels, 67% according to Wyscout, to Christensen’s 61%. The Frenchman also edges his rival out in terms of success rates in defensive duels and number of interceptions per match.

Statistically, over the course of the last year at least, Zouma has been the better defender and he’s carried that form into pre-season. With Lampard also stating that he is a fan of the player, I would back him to start alongside Luiz on August 11th.