Chelsea predicted lineup vs Fulham - Premier League
- Chelsea take on Fulham in the Premier League this Monday night
- The Blues have an extensive injury list making team selection tough for Mauricio Pochettino
- The west London outfit finished two places and eight points below Fulham last season
Mauricio Pochettino was offered some rare respite in midweek as Chelsea managed a narrow victory over Brighton in the Carabao Cup third round.
The Blues have endured an underwhelming start to the new campaign with mediocre performances, poor results and an exponentially growing injury list.
Pochettino will be hoping that Wednesday's win can act as a springboard to success, with Chelsea's trip to Fulham on Monday night their first chance to build some momentum. The Blues' west London rivals will prove stern opposition, but Chelsea need to pick up as many points as they can before a difficult run of fixtures after the October international break.
Chelsea's long list of absentees makes Pochettino's life vastly more difficult, but the Argentine still has plenty of top-quality options at his disposal for the trip to Craven Cottage.
Chelsea predicted lineup vs Fulham (4-2-3-1)
GK: Robert Sanchez - The Spaniard is firmly Chelsea's number one, grabbing his second clean sheet of the season against his old side Brighton in midweek.
RB: Marc Cucurella - The full-back has had a difficult start to life at Stamford Bridge, but arguably put in his strongest performance of his Chelsea career against Brighton. Playing in a less familiar right-back role, Cucerella stood out, likely being utilised in the same position against Fulham due to Malo Gusto's suspension.
CB: Axel Disasi - Has started every game for Chelsea this season and is a necessary inclusion given the club's defensive injuries.
CB: Thiago Silva - Rested against Brighton but should come back into the lineup on Monday, especially given Levi Colwill is likely to move out to left-back.
LB: Levi Colwill - Not a natural yet at full-back, but can offer some much-needed solidity down the left-hand side, even if he lacks a little going forward. Ben Chilwell's injury should make Colwill a shoo-in to start, although Ian Maatsen could fill in too.
CM: Moises Caicedo - The summer signing is finding his feet at Stamford Bridge and Romeo Lavia's injury has left little competition for his place.
CM: Conor Gallagher - One of Pochettino's favourites was rested midweek against Brighton, indicating he's likely to start against Fulham.
RW: Cole Palmer - Impressive on his first start against Brighton and should be given his second against Fulham. He even managed his first assist for the Blues when setting up Nicolas Jackson's winner in midweek.
AM: Enzo Fernandez - Many may not be quite sure as to why Fernandez has been shunted into an attacking-midfield role given his struggles further up the pitch, but Pochettino seems to think he can be a positive influence there.
LW: Mykhailo Mudryk - Starting to show glimpses of his quality after a pretty poor start to his Chelsea career. Needs a couple of goal contributions to get his confidence flowing.
ST: Raheem Sterling - With Jackson suspended and Armando Broja unlikely to be rushed back into the starting lineup after ten months out, Sterling is Pochettino's only viable option up top. The forward has led the line occasionally in the past and will likely feature in more of a false nine role.
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