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Chelsea will be extremely eager to get back to winning ways when they travel to Hull on Sunday. After two consecutive draws, the league leaders need three points as they look to close out the Premier League title. They have 10 league games left ahead of this meeting with Hull, and a six point lead over challengers (and current champions) Manchester City to protect.

This trip is one of just three fixtures outside London in their run in, which should make things a lot easier for them with so little traveling required. Jose Mourinho guaranteed that his side would win the Premier League title last week, and with their current situation looking rather rosy they are certainly heavy favourites. The big worry is that the side might just become complacent, with most pundits suggesting that the title race is already over.

We’ve saw a glimpse of complacency creeping in during the matches against Bradford and Paris Saint-Germain that resulted in FA Cup and Champions League exits respectively, and it goes hand in hand with the lack of ruthlessness the players and manager have pointed out on several occasions. It cost their title hopes last year with points thrown away against smaller sides, and it can’t be allowed to happen again. A win at Hull would send them into the last nine games in a fantastic position.

A big performance would also clear the PSG result and poor display from people’s minds, as things haven’t really picked up since then. A win at Hull would help everyone move past that, as it sets up the run in with the title firmly marked as the top (well, only) priority, and within touching distance. Given City’s tougher fixture list and the Blues’ game in hand, the gap is likely to get bigger if anything.

A few win in this game and further victories in the early April fixtures, and City could end up even further behind, ending the title race with a month or so to spare. Luckily for Chelsea, they have an excellent recent record against the struggling Tigers. In every meeting between the teams since Hull got back into the top flight, Chelsea have run out 2-0 winners. That seems to be Mourinho’s favourite scoreline, and he’d happily take the same result again over his friend Steve Bruce.

Hull are in need of the points themselves, as they sit just three points above the bottom three. Aston Villa below them are hitting form, Burnley seem to be as well, while Sunderland have recently changed manager which could produce a “bounce”. Hull are far from out of danger right now, and they need to start getting points on the board. After Chelsea’s recent performances, the Tigers will believe a result is possible here. They’ve taken points off City, Arsenal and Liverpool this season, so they enjoy these big games.

That’s the task that the Blues face here, having to get back to winning ways and their early season performances. A few key players aren’t playing as well as they were early in the season, and if they get back to their best then Mourinho’s title promise should be fulfilled.

LCN Verdict: Chelsea to win 2-0

Chelsea will be looking to bounce back from their disappointing Champions League exit to PSG with a win over Southampton on Sunday. After their 2-2 draw with the French champions last Wednesday, they crashed out of Europe on away goals, so this is the only competition that the Blues have left to play in this season.

With the side still top of the Premier League and the Capital One Cup already won, Jose Mourinho is still on course to guide his team to a successful campaign. The manner of the exit against PSG wasn’t just disappointing, it was worrying, especially ahead of the title race run in. With a five point lead and a game in hand the trophy should be as good as won with a few more wins, but progress looked just as certain on Wednesday until they threw it away.

With an away goal lead, home advantage and a man advantage for much of the game, Chelsea should have come through their last 16 game against PSG. The side just didn’t play well enough, they weren’t ruthless enough. That has been identified as a failure of the team on many occasions before, and it still hasn’t been fixed. The big worry now is that the side coast towards the title like they did against the Parisians. That kind of lazy display would allow City right back in with the chance to retain their crown.

Focus will be the key aspect of the last few weeks of the campaign, as the Premier League does seem to be Chelsea’s to lose from here. This weekend’s game will be a big test of their mettle, as they face Champions League-chasing Southampton at Stamford Bridge. The Saints have been in impressive form this season, shocking most with their consistency, but they’ve hit a bit of a rough patch of late. They’ve found scoring goals a problem, and they’ve dropped out of the top four after a few poor results.

They held the league leaders to a 1-1 draw at St Mary’s over the festive period, a result which contributed to City closing the gap early this year. Mourinho will be hoping for a better result and performance this time, and he’ll be looking for a few of the out of form players to step up. While no one is expected to be 10/10 every time, the likes of Cesc Fabregas and Diego Costa have dropped off massively in recent weeks. That may be just to the lack of a winter break, but the team can’t carry those two while they’re playing below par.

We may see a few changes for this game, with the likes of Costa or Fabregas sitting a game out. Loic Remy is waiting in the wings to come on up front, but there isn’t as many options in midfield. After this game, the Blues will have just 10 games left this season, and this is the time when they need to show just how much they’ve improved since last year.

LCN Verdict: Chelsea to win 2-0

Chelsea face PSG on Wednesday night as they look to book a place in the Champions League quarter finals. The two sides finished the first leg in Paris all-square, so everything is on the line in this one, and both managers will be expected to get their sides into the next round. Chelsea hold a slight advantage with their away goal, but that could be turned on its head on Wednesday night.

Just as they had in the first leg, Chelsea come in to this game with a week-long break. They played at Upton Park last Wednesday and, with no weekend game, they should be pretty fresh for the visit of the French champions. After a week which saw them lift a trophy, overcome a difficult obstacle in the league and then take a few days off, morale should be pretty high within the Blues’ camp at the moment too.

As for PSG, they had league action on Saturday before they made the trip to London. They beat Lens 4-1 at home, and moved top of Ligue 1 as a result. While that will be a boost for PSG, it won’t match up to the week of training and rest that Jose Mourinho put his men through. With an away goal, Chelsea could really just sit back early on in this game, before pushing forward and picking off the visitors later on when they have the physical advantage.

This game is a complete reversal of the quarter final meeting between the two sides last season, when Chelsea had to push for the win in the second leg. They trailed 3-1 and needed a 2-0 win, which they finally got late on. This time, the Premier League leaders know they are currently in the driving seat with their away goal, so not conceding here is key. Of course they’ll have to push forward due to the players in the team and the fact that they’re at home, but don’t expect to see the Blues going all out here.

It suits Mourinho’s team to play a patient game, as the longer this game goes the more desperate PSG will become. As long as they can keep it tight early on, there will be chances for the likes of Oscar, Eden Hazard and Diego Costa on the counter attack. The key will be not to get too defensive, as we saw how difficult the first leg became when PSG came roaring back after going behind, and the visitors couldn’t get out of their own half.

Nemanja Matic is back for this game, and his presence will be a big factor in winning the midfield battle. That will leave Mourinho with a decision to make at the back. Keep Gary Cahill, or play Kurt Zouma who was been fantastic in the holding midfield role of late. Whoever gets picked, they’ll have to be at the top of their game to stop the likes of Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Edinson Cavani.

LCN Verdict: Chelsea to win 2-1 (3-2 aggregate)

Chelsea return to Premier League action on Wednesday night, as they cross the capital to face an out of form West Ham side. The Hammers are sitting well in the top half after an excellent season, but a loss to the Blues over Christmas was part of a poor run for them, and that’s continued on in the first two months of 2015. Despite that, this will still be a tough game, with the league leaders missing players and having to come in to this on the back of a cup final, albeit one they won.

Chelsea will of course be missing Nemanja Matic for this one, as he serves the second and final game of his ban for his red card at Burnley. The Serbian is a big miss for the Blues, especially with his stand-in John Obi Mikel also likely to miss out. Without a recognised defensive midfielder, this will be a tough game, as West Ham have a physical side and enough pace to worry any opposition.

So far this season, West Ham have beaten Liverpool and Manchester City at home, so they pose a threat to the league’s top sides at Upton Park. The league leaders do represent a very different task though, especially given how Sam Allardyce has seen his side’s good start to the season collapse in recent weeks and months.

The Hammers are without a win in their last six games, while they’ve managed just one league victory since losing 2-0 at Stamford Bridge on Boxing Day last year. Goals from John Terry and Diego Costa sealed that win, a comfortable one, which was the last game at the Bridge in 2014.

After the League Cup final, there are also league and Champions League commitments for Chelsea to fulfil over the coming weeks. The return leg of the last 16 clash with PSG takes place a week after the trip to Upton Park, and Jose Mourinho will be hoping to have the majority of his squad available and fighting fit for that game against the French champions.

We know Mourinho isn’t usually one for rotating these days, he prefers a settled team and it’s hard to imagine we’ll see too many changes at Upton Park. We may see the odd change from the League Cup final, possibly with the centre halves and in the attacking midfield positions, but the central midfield options are too restricted to see many changes. It is hard to imagine the same side playing the League Cup final and then starting against the Hammers just over 72 hours later.

While the final showdown with Spurs will be the big game of the week, the club can’t afford to drop their focus in the league, as they look to keep Manchester City at bay as we head in to the final stretch. After this game we’ll have just 10 left in the league, which is when things get really serious.

LCN Verdict: Chelsea to win 2-0

Chelsea head to Wembley on Sunday as they face rivals Tottenham in the League Cup final. This is the first final since Jose Mourinho returned to the club, and he’ll be looking to win his first silverware in almost three years this weekend. Just as it did 10 years ago, Mourinho will be hoping the League Cup can provide a springboard to help secure the Premier League title in the run in.

The big news heading in to this one is that Nemanja Matic will be missing for the Blues, despite his ban being reduced from three games to two by the FA. That will mean he misses the final this weekend, and he’s likely to be replaced by John Obi Mikel in the holding role. We saw what Harry Kane and Spurs did to Matic when the two met at White Hart Lane on New Year’s Day, so what could they do against Mikel?

Well, Spurs have problems of their own ahead of this game. They face a midweek trip to Florence on Thursday night before they head to Wembley on Sunday, and the Europa League did affect their domestic performances early in the campaign. All that travel and a difficult game against a strong Serie A side isn’t the best preparation for a final, especially when Chelsea have had a week off before this game.

Last week Spurs drew 2-2 at home to West Ham, starting poorly and salvaging a draw in the end. That might have been because they had one eye on the final, but their midweek Europa exploits surely can’t have helped. If they have any kind of Europa League hangover going in to this game, then you’d expect that Chelsea would be climbing the Wembley steps to lift the trophy on Sunday night.

It’s a much needed trophy for the Blues as well. They may be Premier League leaders, but they’ve not quite kept up the trophy standard of the Abramovich era in recent seasons. Their last trophy came two seasons ago in the Europa League, and that was the last time they made an appearance at Wembley. It’s hardly a drought, but it’s not the kind of record Mourinho prides himself on.

He has been waiting for a trophy since winning La Liga in 2012, and this is his best chance to do it since coming back to Stamford Bridge. There is a chance for them to win silverware in the league and Champions League, and this trophy will be seen as a boost on the way to doing that. Winning a trophy just before the start of the run in is a huge morale booster, plus any trophy is something Mourinho and the club want to win.

It’s hard to see Spurs making this easy, and the loss of Matic here will be noticed. Chelsea’s finals tend to be tight affairs, and that’s likely to happen again here. While it will be a tough game, the Blues should come through this with another trophy in the cabinet.

LCN Verdict: Chelsea to win in extra time

Chelsea could open up a temporary 10 point lead at the top of the Premier League table with a win against Burnley on Saturday. The Blues play before champions Manchester City, who play on Saturday evening against Newcastle, and they know a win against the Clarets will heap pressure onto City. With just 13 games left to go, each win brings the league leaders that little bit closer to winning the title.

The big news ahead of this one is the return of Diego Costa. The frontman has been absent for the last three league games, although he did make an appearance against PSG on Tuesday night. He has been a big miss, the Blues just don’t look clinical without him in the team. While Loic Remy and Didier Drogba are both good options, Costa gives the team something else, that added bit of potency.

Costa’s return comes against the side who have conceded the most goals in the league, which he’ll surely be looking forward to. Burnley was the team against whom Costa made his debut back in August, and he scored that night as the club opened their season with a win. A similar result will be expected here, as Chelsea look to move in to a commanding position on top of the league, and it’s certainly going to be a different kind of workout than their game at PSG in midweek.

This game will see the Blues facing a packed defence, and a very hard-working, compact side. We’ve seen this in recent games against Aston Villa and Everton, and they were both tough matches. While Burnley are lingering in the bottom three, we are going to see a determined side here who try to make things difficult for the hosts. Just look at their 2-2 draw at the Etihad for an example of that.

Hopefully the return of Costa will make the attack a lot more clinical, and open up some space for the supporting cast coming from midfield. That would hopefully lead to a much more comfortable win than we’ve seen in recent weeks. The main problem with that, going into this game, is just who will be available behind Costa.

After the PSG game Mourinho said he had five injured players on the field that night, and they hadn’t trained in days. Willian and Cesc Fabregas were rumoured to be part of that contingent, but it’s hard to tell who else was. But with potentially five players missing, or being kept ahead of the Capital One Cup final the week after, we might see a very different Chelsea team in this game.

Oscar is another who had an injury coming up to the game, and if he is out, along with Fabregas and Willian, we could see some selection worries in the advanced midfield positions. If either Willian or Oscar can’t make it, there’s a good chance you’ll see new man Juan Cuadrado. Hopefully they’ll have recovered in time for Saturday’s game.

LCN Verdict: Chelsea to win 3-0

Chelsea head to Paris on Tuesday night as they get their Champions League campaign back under way. After a few months off, Europe’s top competition returns with a host of great ties, with this one chief among them. After two brilliant encounters in last season’s quarter final, expect another exciting tie here.

The Blues, of course, had the weekend off after their FA Cup elimination in the last round, which gave them almost a week’s rest before this game. That should hopefully play a factor, with close to a fully fit squad to call on. Oscar and John Obi Mikel are the only doubts at the minute, but they could return for the game.

Oscar was unlikely to feature, as Mourinho seems to prefer two holding midfielders in games like this. Mikel would have taken up a role beside Nemanja Matic and Cesc Fabregas, to give the visitors a more secure base as they look to shut down space for PSG’s array of attacking talent. Should Mikel be out, it’s likely Ramires will take up his place in midfield. The other big team news is the return of Diego Costa, whose ban has ended, although it didn’t stop him playing in European games anyway.

As for PSG, the French champions didn’t have the weekend off, but they did manage to fall asleep towards the end of their game against Caen. They were 2-0 up and cruising, close to moving top of Ligue 1 and they even tweeted that they were parking the bus late on, with a nod to Jose Mourinho. In the last few minutes, that bus broke down. They conceded twice and fell to a 2-2 draw, which has kept them sitting third in the league.

To add injury to insult, they’re now without at least four first team players for this game, possibly more. Yohan Cabaye, Marquinhos, Serge Aurier and Lucas all came off against Caen, and they’re out for the game on Tuesday. Javier Pastore and Blaise Matuidi are both doubt for this game as well. That seems to make Chelsea favourites here, especially if you listen to PSG coach Laurent Blanc.

The former France boss said, “If someone had told me this story, I would not have believed it. We will play bravely but there are not many solutions, with four or five injured. It’s an extraordinary challenge.”

One man who will be fit is David Luiz, and the Blues players will surely be looking forward to seeing the Brazilian again after his £50million move to France in the summer. But before that can happen, there’s a game to be won. Knowing Luiz like they do, the Chelsea players will surely have a few tips for Costa against the error-prone defender. An away goal would be great, while the French side’s injury list means the Blues could well get themselves at least daw here.

LCN Verdict: 2-2 draw