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Chelsea return to Premier League action early on Saturday, as they take on Aston Villa at Villa Park. The Blues will be hoping to consolidate a place in the top half of the table with a victory against the league’s bottom side. Given Villa’s awful displays so far this term, surely Guus Hiddink’s men can take all three points back from this trip to the West Midlands?

The only thing Chelsea have to play for here is a chance to creep further up the league table. They currently sit in 10th spot, and there’s little chance of them making the top six or seven. European qualification therefore seems to be out of the question, and it’s not likely that the higher ups at the club even want a place in the Europa League.

You’d hope that without any goals or pressure from up high, Hiddink lets a few fringe players or youngsters into the team. What could the club learn from playing the first team in the remaining games? The side who won the title last season are experienced, possibly even too experienced, so give someone else a chance to impress.

Diego Costa is suspended again, so hopefully we get chance to glimpse a little more of Bertrand Traore up front. Although, there is a chance that we finally get to see Alexandre Pato take the field in a Chelsea shirt. Falcao is missing again up front, but it’s hard to imagine that he would have got near the squad anyway.

Long term absentee Kurt Zouma is out still, while there’s no sign of a return for Eden Hazard. His injuries this term haven’t seemed too severe, but he has missed a lot of minutes. It seems like he’s either not in any rush to make it back into the team, or he’s becoming worryingly injury prone.

Aston Villa have had an awful campaign so far, so for Hiddink to pick a weakened side here would be justifiable. The likes of Ruben Loftus-Cheek or Kenedy should be able to impress against Remi Garde’s men, a side who have lost six straight games. They sit on the verge of relegation, and they look to be just weeks away from having their fate confirmed.

Given Villa’s form, there really isn’t any excuse for Chelsea not winning here. Even if Hiddink plays a rotated side in this clash, they should be more than good enough to take the points. Of course, this is the ground where the Dutchman first took charge of Chelsea, so he’ll be hopeful of returning here and claiming a victory.

This is a game that even staunch fans will have trouble getting excited about, so it’s hard to see why it’s being broadcast on TV. The fact that it is an early game makes it even harder for the away fans to make the trip, and makes it that much more unappealing. We should get to see a few goals here at least, as it’s hard to have any faith in either of these two defences.

LCN Verdict: Chelsea to win 2-1

Chelsea return to the Bridge on Saturday as they desperately look for something to cling to in the run in. The Blues’ final chance of a trophy disappeared on Saturday at Everton, leaving them little to play for. Can they produce an unlikely, and possibly unwanted, Europa League push with a victory at home to high flying rivals West Ham?

The term transition period is often overused in football, but it feels very apt here. Not for the players, but for the fans. Chelsea under Roman Abramovich have been many things, but they’ve always been contenders. 2010-11 was the closest they had come to a dull run in, but even then they had a late push for the title. These next two months will be most redundant in the Abramovich era so far.

Getting used to two months of football with no stakes will be a massive transition for the Chelsea fans. Many of them would have seen the club in worse shape, but that was some time ago. Luckily, they have a game against some pretty bitter rivals to ease the shift in focus. Those rivals come to town with much loftier ambitions than Chelsea currently have.

In an extra blow to Blues fans, they face a West Ham side who are having a great year. They’re in the top five, and they’d move fourth with a win here. The Hammers made it into the draw for the FA Cup semis, with a replay against Man United to come.

Opposing West Ham will be the driving force here, as the fans search for something to care about. That’s unlikely to be the Europa League, given the July start date for the sixth placed side. It could be that we see a very different Chelsea side over the next few games, with Guus Hiddink completely free to include young talent.

Giving a few young stars a run out would help galvanise some support, as it would feel like the team is building towards something. Giving fringe players experience could help going forward, but is Hiddink worried about going forward? He’s already said he’s gone in the summer. He’ll want to leave with the best record possible, now that the trophies are gone. He could end up playing a full strength team.

John Terry should return for the Blues, which will likely push out youngster Kenedy. Eden Hazard is a doubt after he missed out last weekend, while Diego Costa is suspended. He could be set for a long suspension too, which may give Bertrand Traore a run in the side. He’s certainly proved himself worthy.

Whatever team starts, it’s easy to see them lacking motivation. The great shame is the swansong for John Terry will be a slow, uninteresting run of meaningless games. Hopefully they can be followed by a big summer, to avoid this scenario happening again in 12 months’ time but we won’t be banking on it.

LCN Verdict: 1-1 draw

Chelsea face the second of two decisive fixtures in four days when they head to Goodison Park on Saturday. This FA Cup quarter final is a massive test for Guus Hiddink, a man who has made no secret of his desire to win the FA Cup again. Roberto Martinez also has history in this competition, and his Everton side need a win here just as badly as the Blues.

Of all the possible draws, this is one of the toughest on paper. Goodison Park is a difficult place to go, and it’s a ground that the Blues lost 3-1 at earlier this season. But, that win is one of just four that Everton have recorded at home in the league, so maybe this fixture isn’t the worst draw that the champions could have been handed.

Chelsea expect Diego Costa to be fit again for this tie, while John Terry is a doubt. He’s confirmed to miss the match with PSG and it remains to be seen if he can recover in time here.

Hiddink’s men will certainly need to be at their best, as this Everton side contains plenty of quality players. Romelu Lukaku and John Stones are known well by most at the club, one a former Chelsea target, the other a former Blues prospect. Both are looking like top players, although they’ve drifted in and out of form in Everton’s patchy season.

To be honest, with Everton sitting 11th in the table, Martinez should be thankful of the disaster that Chelsea have had this term. If they were in the title fight or even close to the top four from the start, then there would have been a lot more focus on the Toffees’ troubles. They have a squad packed with players who are worth £30million plus, but they still can’t contend with the likes of Leicester and Southampton at the top.

A lot of that would be forgotten with a cup victory, which makes this tie huge for Martinez. Having seen his side crash out of the League Cup, they’ll need to do better here, as they look to book a trip to Wembley for the semi finals.

Chelsea aren’t in a completely different boat, they too need success to keep their top players, and to attract new ones. This squad needs improving before next term, but why would a top player come to a side mid-table, out of the Champions League and trophyless? A cup win would show that this season was just a blip, and that they’re still contenders for silverware, even at their weakest point.

It would also give the top stars a reason to stay, with Eden Hazard among those who have been linked with a move away. Willian could be as well, and you couldn’t blame him if his head was turned, given how much he’s contributed compared to his teammates. After the season he has had, the Brazilian deserves to be playing at the highest level.

Of course, when it’s make or break for both sides, someone is going home disappointed. Hopefully the experience in the Blues side will give them the edge in this one and given Everton’s defensive problems we fancy Chelsea to get the job done.

LCN Verdict: Chelsea to win 2-1

Chelsea are looking to make it back to back home league wins with victory over Stoke City on Saturday. After thrashing Newcastle last month, the Blues are now hoping to get some momentum going at the Bridge, before attention turns to a massive few days for the club. Can they take a much need victory here, or will this be another slip up?

Momentum seems to be the big thing about the club now, as they look to battle for success in two cup competitions. The Blues have got themselves up the table after a couple of wins, but they’re now playing so well that they can be considered a threat in both the FA Cup and Champions League. It’s going to take a huge effort for them to win either competition, but right now they’re certainly in with a chance.

Next week is a make or break week for their season, with PSG visiting the Bridge on the Wednesday night in the Champions League. That’s followed by a trip to Everton in the FA Cup quarter finals the Saturday after, and that will really test their ambitions for the season.

Guus Hiddink will want his side in good form going into those games, but there’s also a possibility that he’ll hold a couple of players back for those clashes. With the Stoke game in the league much less important than the cup clashes, we might see a rotated side take the field this weekend. Few managers would prioritise the cups ahead of the league, but in Hiddink’s short stay, trophies are the most important thing to him and the best the Premier League can seemingly offer is the booby prize of Europa League qualification.

That does mean the team are running the risk of taking their eye off the ball in the league ahead of this Stoke game. If they do choose to rest a few players, that could leave them at risk of an upset. Stoke have already beaten the champions twice this season, albeit once on penalties. Both those games came at the Britannia Stadium, while unusually Stoke have actually been pretty dangerous on the road this term.

They’ve been through a poor recent run, where they lost three games in a row away from home, but they got back to winning ways at Bournemouth. With their set up, they’re a brilliant counter attacking side, and that could hurt this Chelsea team, as they’re just getting back the confidence to control games. Without their biggest names, this could be a very tough afternoon.

Given the size of the squad, it’s hard to see full scale rotation here. One or two may drop out, but expect Hiddink to try and keep his side winning games, so they go into their crucial week in impressive form. They need to restore their fear factor at the Bridge, and the only way to do that is to keep on winning.

LCN Verdict: Chelsea to win 2-1

Chelsea are hoping to build on their huge win over Manchester City when they head to St Mary’s on Saturday. Having secured progress in the FA Cup and having survived the first leg of their Champions League tie with their chances of progression in tact, they will now be hoping to improve their league fortunes. Can Guus Hiddink lead his men to another win, or will they be the latest side to fall against Southampton?

This is one of the most difficult fixtures the Blues could have been handed this week, as Southampton come into this one in fantastic form. They’re unbeaten in their last six, and they’ve won four on the spin at home. Fraser Forster has yet to concede a goal since returning from injury. In fact, the England international hasn’t conceded a goal since Diego Costa scored against him in March of last year.

That form has seen the Saints move into the top six in the league, and they’re just a point off Manchester United. They had a free weekend after going out of the cup in the third round, so they’ll be well rested ahead of this one. That should give them an edge over a Chelsea side who have been in league, European and cup action since the Saints’ last game.

That all builds up to a pretty tall task, even discounting the fact that this Southampton team were 3-1 winners at the Bridge back in October. They might have faced a much worse off Blues side back then, but Ronald Koeman’s men are more than capable of completing the league double over the champions on Saturday. They know that a draw or better will move them into the top five here, with Manchester United playing title favourites Arsenal on Sunday.

The Blues will be hoping to record back to back league wins for the first time this term, following their 5-1 victory over Newcastle at Stamford Bridge two weeks prior. With this game quickly followed by a trip to Carrow Road to face Norwich, there’s a chance for the Blues to build up some momentum and move further up the league table.

Hiddink will be hoping that John Terry will be back for this clash, although he’ll be tempted to keep Branislav Ivanovic at centre-half. Their current defensive line up sees the Serbian and Cesar Azpilcueta in their natural positions, which seems like a better fit. Even Abdul Baba Rahman seems to be doing well at left back. There are few other options to come in right now, but this back four probably needs a settled spell going forwards.

Expect few other changes up top, as it’s hard to fault anyone from the game on Sunday. Eden Hazard produced a sublime display in that win, and it would be incredibly harsh to drop him here. Barring a possible return for Terry, the team shouldn’t change much here.

LCN Verdict: 1-1 draw

Chelsea will be looking to bounce back from their Champions League defeat in midweek when they face Manchester City on Sunday in the FA Cup. Having lost narrowly in the first leg of their tie against PSG, this is a huge follow up for the champions. Can the team make a big statement with a victory, or will their season get even worse here?

Nemanja Matic returns after serving a suspension in midweek, and he is likely to move back into the team alongside John Obi Mikel. John Terry is a doubt for this clash, which could lead to Gary Cahill and Branislav Ivanovic to continue their makeshift centre half partnership. Guus Hiddink will be hoping his captain can return for this game, one which could well define their season.

While this year was seen as a write off, there are still two competitions that the Blues could win. While it’s hard to make a case for them after the season they’ve had, but the quality is certainly there. They can get the edge in these big games, it’s just a question of the team refocusing after a huge job in Paris on Tuesday night.

Luckily for them they should receive a boost for this game, with Manchester City facing Champions League action of their own. They head to face Dynamo Kiev, runners up to Chelsea in the group stage. They play in Ukraine on Wednesday, and the team is expected to travel out on Tuesday. Then, they return to play Liverpool at Wembley on Sunday in the Capital One Cup final.

The FA Cup is likely to drop down the list of priorities for City, with Champions League progress and the League Cup on the line. That should see a rotated side take the field in this one, with many of the top stars left to rest ahead of a crucial few days for Manuel Pellegrini and his men. Could that give Chelsea a slight edge?

They’d be a lot more confident if they see a team sheet lacking City’s biggest threats. That would really boost belief in the cup run, something the Blues really need. If they surrender their places in the cups early, then the season is effectively over. That leaves Hiddink as a bit of a lame duck in the dugout, with nothing to push for this season, and no future at the club towards which to build anything.

A cup run is the only thing keeping Chelsea fans remotely on board following the awful collapse they’ve seen this term, and the side has to guarantee that it continues. A defeat to City in unthinkable, especially if it’s against a weakened side. Hiddink’s big game record at the club is good, and that should continue against a team who are falling further and further off the pace in the title race.

LCN Verdict: Chelsea to win 2-1

It’s Champions League time for the Blues once again, as the competition returns following its winter break. The Blues head to Paris for the first leg of this clash, for which they are heavy underdogs. With their league season in tatters, can they pull off an incredible result here to boost their Champions League hopes or will their awful season just go from bad to worse?

Another year, another clash against PSG in the Champions League. After knocking them out two years ago, and being knocked out by them last year, these two know each other fairly well. It might have helped matters if the manager who had come through both those ties was here now to take advantage of what he had learnt, but that’s not how it works at Chelsea.

Guus Hiddink leads his team into this clash, and they do have quite an impressive away record under him. His best results so far have come away from the Bridge, and Blues fans would love to see a repeat of the performance at the Emirates here. To do that they’d need to pull off a task that no one has managed this year, to prevent PSG from winning.

The French champions have won 17 consecutive games, stretching all the way back to December 1st. That’s seen them take charge of Ligue 1, where they now have a 24 point lead. With France already dominated, the goal for them now is to move up a level and dominate in Europe. While they’ve yet to really make a huge splash in the Champions League, they’re more than capable of it.

The French side have a team full of stars and manager Laurent Blanc recently signed a contract extension at the club. They have so much ability, just how could Chelsea possibly stop them? It would take a massive defensive display to hold this team off, is that something that this Chelsea team are capable of? Can they replicate the heroics of the 2012 side?

They have a strong defence on paper, but it’s just not worked for them this term. Branislav Ivanovic is showing signs of age, Cesar Azpilicueta has been far from his best and our most reliable centre back is now out injured. Without Kurt Zouma, Gary Cahill and John Terry will have to roll back the years here.

Hiddink did coach Chelsea to a 0-0 result in the Camp Nou before, back in 2009. That was the year that Andres Iniesta’s last minute strike knocked the Blues out on away goals. A display like that would do it here, but it’s hard to see the team being able to pull it off.

If the side could play like they did at the Emirates, we’d have a chance. The problem is, PSG are a much better side than Arsenal, and they’re tougher to shut out. This looks like a task too far for Hiddink and this could well be the Blues’ last big away European trip for some time.

LCN Verdict: PSG to win 2-0

Chelsea will be hoping to end a run of four consecutive draws at Stamford Bridge when they take on relegation threatened Newcastle on Saturday. After getting last gasp equalisers in their last two home matches, the Blues need to up their game ahead of the Magpies’ visit. While they have little to chase in the league for the rest of the season, they simply have to start winning games.

With the return of Champions League action getting very close, there’s a risk that the Blues head in to their last 16 clash with PSG undercooked. They look like a team who are just getting through games without really pushing themselves, and that’s not something fans want to see. It’s not easy to just go from a side slowly manoeuvring through their schedule to one capable of taking on Europe’s best in a few short days.

While we can’t expect that much from the Blues after the season they’ve been having, it’s not too much to be expecting better. Guus Hiddink was brought in to initially steady the ship, but the club would have been hoping he could kick the team on and see them push up the table.

That has yet to materialise, with the team still 13th, only a place above where Jose Mourinho left them. There have been positive signs in the games we’ve seen lately, but not enough points. The displays haven’t been complete, and they need to get better if the team is to do anything in the cups this season.

You would imagine that a clash with Newcastle is the perfect opportunity for the team to start putting things right, given that the Geordies have lost their last five away games. Since August, they’ve won two and lost the rest of their matches on the road, and it’s hard to say that they played well in either victory. The team have a great chance to get back to winning ways here, and not taking it would be a huge blow ahead of the midweek trip to Paris.

The Blues will be missing Kurt Zouma for this game and every other game this season. The young defender is expected to miss the next six months after suffering a horrible injury against Manchester United. That’s not just cost him the place in the Chelsea team that he earned this season, but also a place in the European Championships.

Gary Cahill should step in for Zouma, while there should be little change elsewhere in Hiddink’s team. He’s so far resisted the urge to introduce Eden Hazard from the start, instead sticking with two holding midfielders. Given the state of the defence, which is now missing Zouma’s pace, the defensive approach will likely continue.

Given that this Newcastle side have conceded 44 goals in the league, you’d like to see Chelsea push to score a few here. While we’d take a win, a comfortable victory would surely boost morale ahead of the game against PSG.

LCN Verdict: Chelsea to win 2-0

Chelsea head back to Stamford Bridge on Sunday as they take on a newly resurgent Manchester United side. After a good FA Cup win was followed by a big win in midweek, the Red Devils will be heading down here with plenty of confidence. The Blues should be feeling pretty good themselves after a fine FA Cup win of their own, but they’d certainly feel a lot better if they could get the three points here and move up the table.

Chelsea travelled to Old Trafford just last month in the league, and they came back with a 0-0 draw after a pretty poor display. Neither side were playing well back then, but United dominated a tame Chelsea side. Now that both sides have a few wins under their belts, will we get a more interesting game this time around?

It will certainly be a busy one, as there are plenty of things to watch out for. While this is another clash between Dutch managers in the Premier League, something the press seem to enjoy, there’s much more going on at the club. This will be the first home game since it was announced that John Terry won’t be having his contract renewed at the end of the season.

That news rocked fans, and there’s surely going to be some show of support for the captain, even more than usual. The majority of the fans seem to want him kept at the club, so this is the time for them to make their voices heard. If they campaign loud enough, it might just extend the defender’s stay, and he could possibly retire at the Bridge.

While Terry is set for the exit, we have two players who came in last month. Both Alexandre Pato and Matt Miazga were brought into the squad, but neither seem to currently have much match fitness. Pato doesn’t seem ready for the demands of the league, while Miazga came across from MLS, and their season has been over for a few months now. While they won’t start, we might see a brief substitute appearance at some stage for the new signings.

They’ll face an uphill task to make it into the team, as right now almost everyone is fit to play. While Radamel Falcao is still struggling, there doesn’t appear to be any other problems ahead of this one. Expect Hiddink to go with the two defensive midfielders once more, giving the team a solid base.

United won 3-0 at home to Stoke on Tuesday night, and it looked like they were playing with some creative freedom. Louis van Gaal had previously tied his men up in shackles defensively, which contributed to their problems. Will he keep up this new more expansive approach, or will he go defensive for this big game? We will see on Sunday, as Chelsea look to put a spanner in United’s top four hopes.

LCN Verdict: Chelsea to win 2-1