Preview: Chelsea vs Fulham – Blues keen to return to winning ways as title race heats up | OneFootball

Chelsea will be keen to return to winning ways when they host Fulham at Stamford Bridge on Boxing Day.

Both sides head into the mouth-watering contest on the back of disappointing draws against Everton and Southampton, respectively.

Despite playing down their title credentials at every opportunity, there was a general sense of frustration within Chelsea’s camp at full-time in Goodison Park last weekend.

The Blues were thwarted at every turn and were lucking to come away from Merseyside with a point as Robert Sanchez made a couple of big saves to keep them alive.

The draw against Everton leaves Chelsea four points behind title favourites Liverpool, who also have a game in hand against their Merseyside rivals.

However, a win at home to Fulham will close the gap to one point, at least until the Reds take on Leicester City later in the day.

Fulham have been one of the few surprise packages this season and are chasing an unlikely spot in Europe.

Marco Silva’s side are unbeaten in their last five games, although they claimed just one victory during that run (D4).

Three of their draws have come against so-called ‘Big Six’ teams, claiming impressive scalps against Tottenham Hotspur, Arsenal and Liverpool before the frustrating goalless draw against Southampton.

Stamford Bridge hasn’t been a happy hunting ground for the Cottagers, but their record against the top clubs will give them the confidence to go for the jugular against Chelsea.

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Fulham’s struggles against Chelsea have been well-documented. They’ve only won one of their previous 25 meetings with the Blues across all competitions, and it came at Craven Cottage in January last year.

The Cottagers are still waiting for their first win at Stamford Bridge in the top flight. The last time they claimed a win on Chelsea’s turf was nearly five decades ago when both sides were still in the second tier.

The Blues have been on a tear since Enzo Maresca took over, losing just two of their 17 Premier League games this season.

Until last weekend, they had embarked on an eight-game winning run across all competitions, but their momentum took a slight hit with Sunday’s 0-0 draw against Everton.

The goalless draw was also the first time Maresca’s side have failed to score in 16 Premier League games.

Despite the blip, the Blues enter Christmas in the league’s top two for the first time since their 2016/17 title-winning campaign.

Boxing Day fixtures at Stamford Bridge are a rare occurrence, with Chelsea set to host their first game on December 26 since falling to a 2-0 defeat against Southampton back in 2019.

They’ll be hoping to avoid a similar fate on Thursday, but history isn’t on their side heading into the London derby.

They’ve lost their last six Premier League games on Boxing Day – all of which have come within London. The Blues have also won just two of their last 11 London derbies on Boxing Day.

Chelsea’s Boxing Day record will boost the morale within the Fulham dressing room, but the Cottagers will make the short trip to the Bridge brimming with confidence nonetheless.

Last weekend’s draw with Southampton – albeit disappointing – marked a huge milestone for Fulham, equalling their longest Premier League unbeaten run under Silva (five games – W1, D4).

With 25 points from 17 matches, they’ve also matched their best-ever tally at this stage, a record set in 2003/04.

However, their attacking momentum stalled last weekend as their streak of scoring in 15 consecutive league matches ended in a goalless draw with Southampton.

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Maresca will be able to call upon Marc Cucurella again after the Spaniard served a one-match ban against Everton. He should reclaim his place in the back four at the expense of Axel Disasi.

Reece James has returned to training but will likely sit out the London derby alongside Romeo Lavia, who has also struggled to shake off injury problems.

Fulham will be without Kenny Tete and Reiss Nelson, who are long-term absentees, while Emile Smith Rowe will hope to return after sitting out the draw against Southampton.

Chelsea potential starting line-up:

(4-2-3-1): Robert Sanchez; Malo Gusto, Tosin Adarabioyo, Levi Colwill, Marc Cucurella; Enzo Fernandez, Moises Caicedo; Pedro Neto, Cole Palmer, Noni Madueke; Nicolas Jackson.

Fulham potential starting line-up:

(4-2-3-1): Bernd Leno; Timothy Castagne, Joachim Andersen, Calvin Bassey, Antonee Robinson; Tom Cairney, Andreas Pereira, Alex Iwobi; Harry Wilson, Raul Jimenez, Adama Traore.