Chelsea v Wolves: Expert take on Maurizio Sarri's side
Wolves travel to Stamford Bridge this weekend looking to complete an unlikely league double over Chelsea.
With that in mind, we spoke with Simon Phillips, editor of ChelseaEcho.com, to get a better look at the Blues.
See what he had to say here:
It seems to have been a bit of a turbulent time at Chelsea since the turn of the year, how have you rated their past few months on the pitch?
January/February has been really gloomy.
I think Maurizio Sarri was genuinely close to the exit door at Stamford Bridge after the 6-0 embarrassment against Man City. But since then there has been much more promising performances.
The players have been giving 100 per cent effort, and the manager has tweaked his tactics slightly to suit the players he’s got, and it’s working.
It’s picked spirits up and lifted the gloom.
Sarri seems to have been under plenty of pressure, do you think he's still the man for Chelsea? Have his methods begun to take effect yet at Stamford Bridge?
I like Sarri, I’ve always backed him and will continue to.
I like his honesty, and I like the fact he wants us to play attacking football. I’m not a fan of watching my team defend and contain all the time, and hope for luck.
But Sarri has realised he had to adapt his style, and I think that’s what will keep him in the job for the foreseeable future.
I want to see him use some of our younger talent a lot more, so I want that to be the next change in him.
But I think we are seeing his methods in play now, but in a more balanced way.
One of the big talking points of late has been Kepa Arrizabalaga's situation following the Carabao Cup defeat - has that affected the mood at Chelsea?
The Kepa incident was totally bizarre. But the affect it had on the players as a group, was over blown.
He is a young player, and he made a silly mistake in the heat of the moment.
His intentions and spirit was right, but his actions were bang out of order. He was punished by the club and by Sarri, and righty so.
Everyone moved on and learnt from it, it hasn’t created any lasting issues.
Wolves got the better of Chelsea at Molineux earlier this season, will Sarri have that game in his thinking heading into this fixture?
Yes I’m sure Sarri and the players will be thinking of the loss, and that will hopefully have a positive affect for us this time around.
I hope Sarri can work out the tactical side of how we need to set-up against a very good Wolves team.
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Obviously, January has come and gone now, what sort of transfer business did Chelsea get up to and how have you rated those deals?
Gonzalo Higuain was a massive signing. Our strikers weren’t doing it and it was a real issue.
Higuain was a ready made ‘Sarri type’ and he was able to slot straight in and we knew he’d make the difference we needed. And he has, perhaps not to the levels we expect just yet, but he’s getting there fast enough.
We didn’t replace Cesc Fabregas but I don’t see that as a major issue as I actually rate Mateo Kovacic playing deeper and covering for Jorginho.
Obviously signing Christian Pulisic early now seems like a clever move, with the hindering transfer ban looming.
Sitting outside the top four, what do you make of Chelsea's chances of getting back into the Champions League places?
Well, if we win our game in hand, we are back in the top four, so it’s entirely in our own hands.
I think as long as we set-up differently depending on the opposition, we can continue to gain this momentum and get a top four spot this season.
Are there any injury worries for the Blues heading into this weekend's game?
Nothing significant to note, only potentially fatigue.
I know Hazard has been nursing a little niggle, but he may get rested midweek to be fresh for Sunday, but we will see.
How do you expect Sarri's side to line-up against Wolves? What's your predicted XI?
Kepa, Azpilicueta, Rudiger, Luiz, Emerson. Jorginho, Kovacic, Kante. Hazard, Higuain, Pedro.
What have you made of Wolves' campaign from afar, do you think they've got what it takes to finish 'best of the rest'?
Wolves have honestly been the one team who have impressed me the most this season, in the sense of being the unexpected.
I think Nuno Santo is a fantastic coach (he was even mentioned with Chelsea when the Sarri sacking was rife), he’s got them playing good football.
I think they are just too far behind the pack ahead to gain anything back, but I do think they will finish the season where they are now, in 7th.
Certainly doing good things there right now and it will only improve even more.
Your match prediction?
Chelsea 2 Wolves 0
You can follow Simon on Twitter by searching for @SiPhillipsSport.