(Sat, 1 March Kick off: 15:00)
This is one of the oldest London rivalries in the football leagues today. For Chelsea this is a short trip east across London but for the fans in the blue corner this is more then just a game against a local rival.
The fans are looking for redemption for the loss in the cup final last Sunday, something they never experienced with their former Portuguese manager. Under new management Chelsea’s style has changed little, still playing a 4-3-3 formation. Making the most of having 3 world class players in the centre of the park (Ballack, Lampard, Essien) with 2 great players to fill in. This is the case for Chelsea in all positions, they have missed the Chelsea and England skipper J. Terry but once Alex adapted to the premiership he looked solid enough to fill in some big shoes at the back. The only injury we know that can really rock Chelsea’s flow would be to their keeper P. Cech but with him in place Chelsea do offer the best squad on paper in the premiership.
West ham will still have hopes of staying in the race for Europe for as long as they can. Four points behind the real contenders for Europe, the hammers will know their home form will be vital. The fans will welcome back two former academy players in Lampard and J. Cole to Upton Park and how could they use them now.
West hams defence has settled down after injuries has kept everyone at the club on their toes and has now become more consistent. There main problem lies with getting the ball into the back of the net. You have to go back to the 12th January to find a game where the hammers have scored more then one in a game and that was against a less then solid Fulham defence. At the start of the season I don’t think Alan Curbishley considered scoring a problem with Bellamy and Ashton leading the front line, but both have been hit very hard with injuries and the West Ham boss has had to do with out both for most of the season.
This game will be hard fought and closer then most think. I believe the Chelsea machine will continue to grind out results and this will be no different. I see Chelsea taking the game 2-0 or 2-1. I still think a clean sheet is what Chelsea will be fighting for and to recover some pride for its fans. A loss here would have the Chelsea fans very blue with Tottenham fans still ringing in their ears the last thing they need is the West Ham fans to pipe up as well.
TomA