Mykhailo Mudryk And Thiago Silva To Start; Enzo Fernandez Out: Chelsea’s Predicted XI To Play Leicester

The FA Cup is the last chance for Chelsea to salvage something from what has been a very disappointing season.

The Blues have a great opportunity to make it through to the semi-final stage as they take on lower-league opponents.

Leicester may be top of the Championship but the Foxes’ form has been poor in recent weeks and Mauricio Pochettino’s side should be heavy favourites to win at home.

Press the next page as we predict Chelsea’s starting eleven for the game at Stamford Bridge this weekend.

GK – Djordje Petrovic

The Serbian continues to show why he should be picked ahead of Robert Sanchez.

Petrovic had no chance with either of Newcastle’s goals on Monday, with Alexander Isak curling the ball into the top corner, while Jacob Murphy’s howitzer was unstoppable.

The 24-year-old was consistently good with everything else he did, collecting crosses and clearing his lines.

Petrovic’s distribution could still be improved upon but he has now firmly established himself as the club’s no.1.

RB – Malo Gusto

The Frenchman continues to go from strength to strength.

Anthony Gordon is usually a tough winger to come up against but Gusto dealt with him easily.

We also saw the 20-year-old making inroads at the other end of the pitch, with his partnership with Cole Palmer flourishing.

Gusto is rightly gaining admirers from across football for his performances, and the accolades are well deserved.

CB – Axel Disasi

He is clearly the centre-back that Pochettino trusts the most, considering his game time this season.

Whether Disasi deserves that faith, it is up for debate. His passing is suspect, to say the least, but he does do the basics well.

Against Newcastle, he stood off Alexander Isak, allowing him to take his shot from just outside the area and score.

At 26 years of age, Disasi is unlikely to ever be an elite centre-back and the fact that he is starting every week for Chelsea is concerning.

CB – Thiago Silva

Pochettino chose Trevoh Chalobah in the back four against Newcastle, ahead of the Brazilian veteran, which was a surprise.

Silva has been fit for the last two matches, but he hasn’t returned to the starting lineup yet. That suggests Pochettino is either unconvinced that he is 100% ready to play or he has started to favour other centre-halves.

If he doesn’t play against Leicester on Sunday afternoon, it would indicate that the latter explanation is more accurate.

Considering Silva’s experience, though, it would be unwise for Pochettino to bench him.

LB – Marc Cucurella

With Ben Chilwell and Levi Colwill both injured, Pochettino has few other options on the left-hand side of defence.

Cucurella made his first appearance in three months against Newcastle and he performed well, for the most part.

The Spaniard will, though, be disappointed in his role in the build-up to Jacob Murphy’s goal; he tried to nick the ball in front of the winger but he failed.

Despite having been out for so long, Cucurella shouldn’t have any issues starting his second game in a row due to the six day gap.

CM – Moises Caicedo

The Ecuadorian worked very hard versus Newcastle and won the midfield battle against Bruno Guimaraes and Sean Longstaff.

There can be no questioning Caicedo’s endeavour since he made his £115m switch from Brighton in the summer.

However, expectations are very high, and he has not been able to stand out in games as much as he would have liked.

Pochettino will be happy for Caicedo to continue doing the dirty work in the middle of the park.

CM – Conor Gallagher

Enzo Fernandez is suspended for the game on Sunday.

The Argentinian international has picked up two bookings in the FA Cup; one against Aston Villa in the fourth-round replay and another versus Leeds.

Due to injuries to the likes of Romeo Lavia and Lesley Ugochukwu, it means the Blues are very short of options in midfield.

Gallagher could be asked to start in a deeper role than he has been in recent matches.

AM – Mykhailo Mudryk

The Ukrainian international made a big impression after coming on as a substitute against the Magpies.

Mudryk came on to play in a no.10 role; a position that Pochettino had also deployed him in the FA Cup against Leeds.

The ploy worked as the 23-year-old weaved past Newcastle’s defence to score Chelsea’s third goal on Monday.

Based on that display, Mudryk deserves another opportunity to show what he can do versus Leicester this weekend.

RW – Cole Palmer

Not much more needs to be said about the 21-year-old, who continues to produce the goods.

Without Palmer, it is very likely that Chelsea wouldn’t have got the three points against Newcastle. He is continuing to score and create goals on a regular basis.

There are the odd games where he doesn’t perform at his best but that is to be expected for someone who is still very young.

Against Leicester, you would expect Palmer to be right in the middle of the action once again.

CF – Nicolas Jackson

The Senegalese international continues to silence his critics.

Jackson’s neat flick to score the opener versus Newcastle belies his reputation for being a raw finisher.

There is no doubt that the 22-year-old does rely on instinct too much sometimes but he continues to develop as a No.9.

Jackson is in great form at the moment, having now hit the back of the net 4 times in his last 7 appearances.

LW -Raheem Sterling

Considering his poor form, some supporters will want the 29-year-old to be benched against Leicester.

However, Sterling is still one of the most effective forwards that Pochettino has at his disposal, having scored 8 goals and provided 9 assists in 35 games for the Blues.

Only Palmer can match those numbers in Chelsea’s first-team squad, so the England international still has a part to play if Chelsea are to end the season on a high note.

Winning the FA Cup is one of the club’s top priorities and, with Sterling on the pitch, they have a better chance of achieving their aim.