Chelsea may be three points clear at the top but Carlo Ancelotti’s side will be desperate to record their seventh home win in a row against Portsmouth to restore some much-needed confidence. As conceding ten goals in four games would suggest, all is not well with the league leaders at the moment and bottom-of-the-table Portsmouth will seek to exploit their weakness at set pieces as they try to cause one of the upsets of the season.
Quick Check
Chelsea
- Defender Alex is fit after a groin injury.
- Leading scorer Didier Drogba has scored 18 goals in 20 games in all competitions this season.
- Frank Lampard has scored four goals in his last five games against Portsmouth.
- Carlo Ancelotti’s side are unbeaten at home for more than a year.
- The Blues have won the last six games between the two teams at Stamford Bridge.
- Midfielder Michael Essien is sidelined for a month with a torn hamstring.
- Striker Salomon Kalou has not yet recovered from a torn thigh muscle.
- Chelsea have conceded ten goals in their last four games.
- 11 of the 13 goals conceded by Chelsea in the Premier Leaguer have come from set pieces.
- Full back Jose Bosingwa is out until the New Year after knee surgery.
Portsmouth
- Pompey scored their first away goal in the second half to earn a 1-1 draw at Sunderland last weekend.
- Defender Younes Kaboul is unavailable as he serves a one-match ban.
- Portsmouth have won just one of their last 20 Premier League away games.
- Pompey have taken only five points from eight matches on the road this season.
- Avram Grant’s side has scored only once against Chelsea in their last six meetings.
- The south-coast side has kept one clean sheet in five games.
Expert Advice
Few people would have had this down as a ‘must-win’ game for Chelsea but that is exactly the case if the Blues are to avoid the possibility of having their lead trimmed further at the top. While Carlo Ancelotti’s side, led by leading scorer Didier Drogba, has maintained their swagger going forward, they have looked strangely nervous at the back over the last fortnight and will be anxious to prove this recent blip is just that. Portsmouth possess some dangerous headers of the ball at set pieces but they have an awful record at Stamford Bridge since 2004. It also remains to be seen whether they will win enough possession to hurt the Blues while their defence will have their hands full with the likes of Drogba, Anelka so, with plenty of goals looking likely, go for a high-scoring game and Betsson’s odds of 2.37 for there to be over 3.5 goals as a value bet.
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