Chelsea host Leicester City in their final match before Christmas on Saturday as they aim to further cement their place in the top four.
Maurizio Sarri's side were boosted by their qualification for the Carabao Cup semi-finals in midweek, with a late goal from Eden Hazard enough to see off Bournemouth in the quarter-finals on Wednesday.
The Blues bounced back from the disappointment of an away loss to Wolves earlier this month by winning their last two league encounters against Manchester City and Brighton.
Leicester were knocked out of the Carabao Cup on Tuesday, however, after losing to Pep Guardiola's Man City on penalties.
The Foxes have failed to win any of their last three league matches and fell to a 1-0 defeat away at Crystal Palace last weekend, a result which saw them slip to 12th in the table.
The last Premier League encounter between these two sides at Stamford Bridge ended in a 0-0 draw last January.
| Game | Chelsea vs Leicester |
| Date | Saturday, December 22 |
| Time | 3:00pm GMT / 10:00am ET |
| Stream (US) | fubo TV (7-day free trial) |
TV Channel, Live Stream & How To Watch
In the United States (US), the game can be watched live and on-demand with fuboTV (7-day free trial) .
New users can sign up for a free seven-day trial of the live sports streaming service, which can be accessed via iOS, Android, Chromecast, Amazon Fire TV, Roku and Apple TV as well as on a web browser.
| US TV channel | Online stream |
|---|---|
| NBCSN | fubo TV (7-day free trial) |
In the United Kingdom (UK), the game will not be shown live as it will be played during the blackout period.
| UK TV channel | Online stream |
|---|---|
| N/A | N/A |
Squads & Team News
| Position | Chelsea players |
|---|---|
| Goalkeepers | Arrizabalaga, Caballero, Green |
| Defenders | Azpilicueta, Zappacosta, Rudiger, Luiz, Cahill, Ampadu, Emerson |
| Midfielders | Fabregas, Jorginho, Drinkwater, Kante, Barkley, Loftus-Cheek, Kovacic |
| Forwards | Willian, Pedro, Hazard, Giroud, Hudson-Odoi, Morata |
Eden Hazard continues in a central striking role for Chelsea after picking up one goal and three assists in his last two appearances in that position.
Centre-back Andreas Christensen was forced off with a hamstring injury against Bournemouth and Maurizio Sarri instead picks David Luiz and Antonio Rudiger at centre-back.
Alvaro Morata has returned to training after recovering from a twisted knee, but he is not even on the bench.
Possible Chelsea starting XI: Arrizabalaga; Azpilicueta, Rudiger, Luiz, Alonso; Jorginho, Kante, Kovacic; Pedro, Hazard, Willian. Subs: Caballero, Cahill, Zappacosta, Fabregas, Barkley, Loftus-Cheek, Giroud.
| Position | Leicester players |
|---|---|
| Goalkeepers | Schmeichel, Ward, Jakupovic |
| Defenders | Simpson, Pereira, Morgan, Soyuncu, Evans, Maguire, Chilwell, Fuchs |
| Midfielders | Iborra, Silva, Mendy, Ndidi, Choudhury, Albrighton, Maddison, Diabate, Gray, Ghezzal |
| Forwards | Vardy, Okazaki, Ihenacho |
Jamie Vardy returns to the Leicester XI having been rested against Manchester City in midweek.
There had been concerns over the fitness of Ben Chilwell and Wilfred Ndidi, who are both struggling with knee injuries and are likely to face late fitness tests, but both are deemed fit to start.
Matty James and Daniel Amartey remain out.
Possible Leicester starting XI: Schmeichel; Ricardo, Morgan, Maguire, Chilwell; Choudhury, Mendy, Ndidi, Albrighton; Maddison; Vardy. Subs: Ward, Fuchs, Evans, Iborra, Gray, Okazaki, Iheanacho.
Betting & Match Odds
Chelsea's odds of winning are priced at 1/3 according to bet 365, while a draw is available at 9/2. A win for Leicester is priced at 10/1.
Match Preview
Getty Images
A win for Chelsea here would see them leapfog Spurs into third place for at least a day, with Mauricio Pochettino's side not playing until Sunday.
It would also be a great boost for Sarri's side to cement their spot in the top four for Christmas, with the race to qualify for next season's Champions League set to intensify during the second half of the season.
There are also signs that star man Hazard is approaching his best form again after various injury issues in recent weeks.
When asked whether he felt playing the Belgian as a forward could be a long-term solution, Sarri said: "I don’t know. I was sure about City in that position we could do a good match. Against Brighton I started to see this situation in different matches.
"Now I want to see it against a team very compact, in low density. We have to see."
Claude Puel will know that his side must pick up some positive results over the festive period to avoid speculation over his own future at the club.
It's been a difficult season for the Foxes on and off the pitch, but with just one win in their last eight matches, Leicester will know that points on the board are a must over the coming weeks.
.jpg?auto=webp&format=pjpg&width=640&quality=60)
.jpg?auto=webp&format=pjpg&width=640&quality=60)
-min.png?auto=webp&format=pjpg&width=640&quality=60)