Chelsea suffered a shock 2-1 loss away to West Ham in midweek putting a halt to their excellent play under Frank Lampard. Now, Chelsea need to get back to winning ways to hold off top-four chasers Manchester United and Wolverhampton Wanderers.
A loss on Saturday at home to Watford would open the door for both Manchester United and Wolverhampton Wanderers to leapfrog them in the table. Watford are just as desperate for a win as one point separates them from the bottom three.
The Hornets have lost back to back matches and are winless in four straight fixtures. The boost received from manager Nigel Pearson’s arrival has evaporated. Watford could get leapfrogged by either Bournemouth or Aston Villa, but both of those clubs face top five teams this weekend as well.
Chelsea have won three straight games against Watford in the league. Their match earlier this campaign at Vicarage Road ended in a 2-1 win for Chelsea. Tammy Abraham opened the scoring in the fifth minute with Christina Pulisic adding a second just after the second-half restart.
Watford did pull a goal back through Gerard Deulofeu with 10 minutes remaining in the match to make it a bit nervy. The Blues dominated the fixture, however, claiming the win.
Pearson will be without goal scorer Deulofeu. He is recovering from a knee injury suffered in midseason. He is joined on the sidelines by Daryl Janmaat and Isaac Success. They too have long-term injuries.
Lampard’s only injury issue is centre-back Fikayo Tomori as the centre-back is working his way back to full fitness. The manager has decisions to make in regards to which striker to start as Abraham has been out of form while Olivier Giroud’s bullying style has been better in recent time.
The Blues are on a three-game winning streak at home with their most recent fixture against Manchester City ending in a win. Chelsea hit the Cityzens on the break but this time around will put the Hornets under repeated threat.
Watford are winless in five straight away games with three consecutive matches ending in losses. Just two matches on the road have ended in wins this season for Watford.
Seven straight games between Chelsea and Watford ended with over 2.5 goals scored. Saturday’s game at Stamford Bridge should once again see over 2.5 goals scored with Chelsea winning a fourth straight win against Watford. Expect the Blues to get back to winning ways under Lampard.