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Chelsea vs. Southampton: Opposition threat

By Jack Deery

HUDDERSFIELD, ENGLAND - DECEMBER 12: Pedro of Chelsea celebrates after scoring his sides third goal with his teammates during the Premier League match between Huddersfield Town and Chelsea at John Smith's Stadium on December 12, 2017 in Huddersfield, England. (Photo by Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images)
HUDDERSFIELD, ENGLAND - DECEMBER 12: Pedro of Chelsea celebrates after scoring his sides third goal with his teammates during the Premier League match between Huddersfield Town and Chelsea at John Smith's Stadium on December 12, 2017 in Huddersfield, England. (Photo by Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images) /
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HUDDERSFIELD, ENGLAND – DECEMBER 12: Pedro of Chelsea celebrates after scoring his sides third goal with his teammates during the Premier League match between Huddersfield Town and Chelsea at John Smith’s Stadium on December 12, 2017 in Huddersfield, England. (Photo by Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images)
HUDDERSFIELD, ENGLAND – DECEMBER 12: Pedro of Chelsea celebrates after scoring his sides third goal with his teammates during the Premier League match between Huddersfield Town and Chelsea at John Smith’s Stadium on December 12, 2017 in Huddersfield, England. (Photo by Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images) /

Southampton face Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Saturday, in a bid to put the 4-1 thrashing by Leicester behind them.

Chelsea currently lie third in the Premier League table after a comprehensive 3-1 victory over newcomers Huddersfield. Antonio Conte’s men suffered a shock defeat last weekend at the hands of West Ham, their fourth of the season, to put a big dent in their title hopes.

Summer transfer Alvaro Morata has been inconsistent this season, with the jury still out on the signing, however the Spaniard has already chipped in with nine goals and four assists in his first 15 Premier League appearances.

Despite playing some excellent football at times this season, the reigning champions have dropped some points this year that you would not expect champions to drop.

Losses against Burnley, Crystal Palace and West Ham have seen the former European Champions drop three points below Manchester United and 14 behind leaders Manchester City.

Arguably, Chelsea’s most important player is centre-midfielder N’Golo Kante. The Frenchman missed a couple of games early on in the season through injury, and it was no coincidence that Chelsea had a slight drop in form. Now a two-time Premier League winner in two seasons, Kante is one of the best in the world in his position. Excellent stamina and a determined attitude has seen the former-Leicester man sky rocket to the top of the footballing world.

It would be harsh to say Chelsea have been poor defensively this season, they have only leaked 14 goals in 17 Premier League games. However, Conte has rotated the back three quite a lot this season, which has caused a few problems at times.

Young Danish defender Andreas Christensen has been a constant feature at the back. A very promising defender with a lot of quality, but he is far from the final product.

Cesar Azpilicueta has possibly been Chelsea’s player of the season, picking up five assists from centre-half. Southampton will find it difficult to break down a resilient Chelsea side, but a result is very important for Mauricio Pellegrino. A big loss could possibly spell the end of Pellegrino’s reign as Southampton boss.

Who will Pellegrino have to be most wary of when facing a strong Chelsea side on Saturday?