Silva, Havertz And Ziyech To Start, James, Werner And Kante Out: Chelsea’s Predicted XI To Play Juventus

David Tully

3 years ago

Categories: Chelsea News, Galleries, Match Previews

Tags: Chelsea, Hakim Ziyech, Juventus, Kai Havertz, Thiago Silva

Chelsea will want to put the disappointing defeat to Manchester City behind them as quickly as possible and they have a chance to do just that when they face Juventus in Turin tomorrow night.

The Bianconeri did win their first group game against Malmo pretty comfortably but they have struggled in the league since the return of Max Allegri as manager.

With that in mind, the Blues should travel to Italy confident of getting a result if they can pose more of a threat in the final third than they did against City at the weekend.

So who will start? Press the next page as we predict our lineup to take on Juve.

GK – Edouard Mendy

The 29-year-old returned to the starting eleven last weekend and pulled off a number of good saves against Manchester City. He will be hoping for a quieter night versus Juventus.

Kepa certainly didn’t do a bad job while Mendy was sidelined, but fans will want the Senegalese international to avoid any further injuries this season.

RWB – Cesar Azpilicueta

The Spaniard looked solid when he was switched to wingback against City following Reece James’ injury. With the England international out of tomorrow’s match with a twisted ankle, Azpilicueta may have to fill in once more.

Callum Hudson-Odoi would be the other option that could be considered by manager Thomas Tuchel but, as it is an away fixture, he may opt for a more conservative approach.

CB – Andreas Christensen

The Danish international has been pretty consistent throughout the course of the campaign so far, and he is likely to keep his place for the Juventus clash.

Trevoh Chaloabah could also be considered but Christensen’s defensive reliability may lead to him being given the nod in the right-sided centre-back role.

CB – Thiago Silva

The Brazilian was surprisingly omitted from the starting lineup for the defeat to City, before James’ injury forced Tuchel into rejigging his back five.

Silva is expected to return to the centre of defence tomorrow evening, and he may be going up against Moises Kean, with both Alvaro Morata and Paulo Dybala ruled out with injuries.

CB – Antonio Rudiger

The 28-year-old’s future may be up in the air, but he is still putting in 7/10 to 8/10 performances every few days, with Tuchel refusing to rest him at any point.

Like all of Chelsea’s defenders, Rudiger found things difficult against City in the second half on Saturday but he should have a slightly more comfortable evening in Turin.

LWB – Marcos Alonso

The Spaniard was threatening with his runs up and down the left flank at the weekend, and he will be expected to do the same against Juve.

Tuchel doesn’t seem to be that open to rotating so it would be a big surprise if Alonso is left out in favour of Ben Chilwell for this one.

CM – Jorginho

The Italian was way below his best against City. He is never comfortable when he doesn’t have time on the ball and he looked decidedly average at times on Saturday.

It will be a very different game in Italy, and you would expect Jorginho to be a dominant force in midfield once again, dictating play and spraying around passes.

CM – Mateo Kovacic

N’Golo Kante’s absence means that the Croatian international is almost certain to be named in the starting eleven for the match tomorrow night.

Kovacic was rather poor with his distribution at the weekend, but his ability to get out of trouble with his dribbling ability is always a useful weapon to have.

RW – Hakim Ziyech

Chelsea have lacked creativity at times in their last couple of matches and the return of the Moroccan in the Champions League looks to be on the cards.

With Mason Mount sidelined for the game, Ziyech could be handed another opportunity. He has been disappointing so far this season but he does tend to excel in Europe when he has more time in possession.

CF – Romelu Lukaku

The Belgian fed off scraps on Saturday but he will be returning to a country where he has dominated defences in recent seasons, so expect him to return to the forefront in Turin.

Of course, Lukaku will be going up against the likes of Leonardo Bonucci so he will need to battle for every ball but you’d expect he’ll get a chance or two against Juve.

LW – Kai Havertz

The 22-year-old looked impressive after coming on against City, and with Mount and Pulisic both unavailable, the German is likely be named in the eleven.

Havertz has been rather inconsistent during his second season with Chelsea and it will be hoped that he can find some form tomorrow evening.