There is no doubt that Chelsea fans are the most joyous currently in the Transfer Tavern, in a turnaround that is in stark contrast to last season’s efforts from the London club.
Antonio Conte has worked wonders since taking over at Stamford Bridge and our landlord has been so impressed by the mixture of tactical knowhow, alongside raw passion shown by the Italian in his first season of English football.
Second to that is the impressive performance shown by the Blues in a season where they have not had to worry about European football.
This certainly has seemed to help them as they lead the pack in the Premier League, and also qualified for the semi-finals of the FA Cup, following Monday’s 1-0 victory over Manchester United.
Stoke City will be the opponents Chelsea will have to get past on Saturday and Blues fans in the Tavern will be hoping this fixture will be as straight forward as the victory on New Years Day, which saw Chelsea equal the record of 13 consecutive wins in the Premier League, as they beat the Potters 4-2 at Stamford Bridge.
Stoke actually sat 14th after that fixture at the Bridge but after climbing to 9th place in the last few months, our landlord predicts the Potters to be a tougher prospect this time around, and this Chelsea XI will have to be on their best form to win this one…
GK: Thibaut Courtois
Our Chelsea punters in the Tavern love that the Belgium keeper is only 24 years of age, meaning they will have someone solid between the sticks for the foreseeable future.
CB: Cesar Azpilicueta
Possibly the most underrated player in this Chelsea squad, Azpilicueta has been sensational at the back this year.
We expect him to start against the Potters.
CB: Gary Cahill
Opened the scoring last time these two met much to the delight of the Chelsea fans in the Tavern, Cahill has led the back three of Chelsea so well this season.
CB: David Luiz
Looks a different player to the one that left Chelsea in 2014, David Luiz has really benefited from Conte’s belief in him.
Expect to see the Brazilian face off against Mark Hughes’ side.
RWB: Victor Moses
Moses was on loan at Stoke for the 2014/15 season in which time he contributed 3 goals and 3 assists in the Premier League.
His performances this season at Chelsea have been sensational.
CM: N’Golo Kante
Fresh from his match winning performance against United in the cup on Monday – Kante will be Chelsea’s midfield engine.
CM: Nemanja Matic
Our resident Chelsea punters are happy to see Matic’s form come close to that of two years ago and he played a major part in Chelsea winning the title that year.
LWB: Marcos Alonso
After mediocre spells in the Premier League at Bolton and Sunderland, Chelsea fans in the Tavern could not have predicted the effect the Spaniard could have had on their side this season.
RF: Pedro
Though Willian was impressive in the cup tie v United and scored twice last time these two sides met.
Our Landlord expects Pedro to retain his place for this one.
CF: Diego Costa
With 17 goals in the Premier League this season, there is no doubting that Diego Costa will be looking to add to his tally here.
LF: Eden Hazard
Hazard has been simply sensational for the Blues this season and the Chelsea fans are raising many a glass to the Belgian wizard in the Transfer Tavern.
