Chelsea begin their Premier League tittle defense with Burnley at Stamford Bridge today. The stakes are high for Italian Manager Antonio Conte as pressure keeps mounting on him after h an underwhelming preseason and defeat in the Community Shield to city rivals Arsenal.
Team News
Chelsea go into the game with injuries and suspensions to key players.Pedro is sidelined with an ankle injury, Eden Hazard and new signing Timoue Bakayoko are both injured. Victor Moses is banned as a result of his red card in the FA Cup final but there could be debuts for both Antonio Rudiger and Alvaro Morata.
Burnley on the other hand have almost everyone available for the season opener. They’ve also made five signings which includes Jack Cork and Charlie Taylor.
Managers Office
Chelsea head coach Antonio Conte on Alvaro Morata: “He’s starting to understand what I want from him during the game.
“But he needs time to understand, to adapt to our style of football, above all for a striker. This role is more difficult to adapt to than the other roles.”
Burnley manager Sean Dyche on the big-money sales of Michael Keane and Andre Gray: “No-one wants to lose their best players, but there’s a reality to all clubs, particularly this one.
“There’s still a level this club operates to. It makes it tough at times, but it’s the reality.
“Some outgrow the club financially. When these opportunities come around, they’re there to be gripped by the players, so there are obvious slots available.”
Match Facts.
Chelsea are unbeaten in the past six meetings with Burnley, all of which came in the Premier League (W4, D2).
Burnley have gone eight league matches without an away win in this fixture since a 1-0 top-flight victory in April 1971. However, the Clarets did knock Chelsea out of the League Cup on penalties at Stamford Bridge in November 2008.
Chelsea have earned an unrivaled 54 points on the Premier League’s opening season, winning 16 and losing just three of their 25 games.
Sean Dyche’s side won only two of their last 16 league and cup games in 2016-17, losing nine times.
