Prediction: Blackburn Rovers vs Chelsea

4th November 2011

Blackburn Rovers missed a great chance to record the second victory of the season, having squandered a two-goal lead at Carrow Road, and they have no choice but to try and make things right when they host Chelsea. The Blues are still trying to recover from the home defeat to Arsenal, although a win at Ewood Park would certainly be a step in the right direction.

After narrowly escaping the drop last term and spending a lot of cash on virtually unproven players, Blackburn were always going to be one of the main candidates for the drop. The interesting thing is that home win over Arsenal is Rovers’ only Premiership triumph this term, and that goes to show that Steve Kean’s side have been pretty disappointing in most of the games this term. Blackburn’s main key feature during the last few years have been their impressive home form, and given that they have lost four of five home games in the Premiership this term, it is no wonder that Rovers are struggling to leave the relegation zone. After winning their Carling Cup tie against high-flying Newcastle, Blackburn played a good game at Carrow Road, but had to settle for a draw after Norwich scored two goals in the last ten minutes. Grant Holt’s injury time equalizer certainly served as a big blow to the players’ already low confidence, so it will take something special for Blackburn to be on top of their game against Chelsea. The good news is that David Dunn and Junior Hoilett will be in contention after recovering from injury, but Michel Salgado, Ryan Nelsen, Vince Grella and Scott Dann remain sidelined.

The arrival of Andre Villas-Boas and new players Mata, Meireles, Lukaku and Romeu had a very positive effect on the Chelsea’s performances, and it is evident that the Blues are looking much better than last season. With Daniel Sturridge returning from his loan spell at Bolton and Frank Lampard back to his best, Chelsea played really well at the start of the season, with the 3:1 defeat at Old Trafford the only under-par result in that period. However, the controversial game at Loftus Road seems to have changed everything for the Blues, as they were not only robbed of victory against QPR, but also lost momentum before the very important clash with Arsenal. Chelsea were beaten at home by the Gunners despite leading twice and after failing to win their Champions League clash against Genk, they are in desperate need of a morale-boosting victory. Andre Villas-Boas will have Jose Bosingwa back from suspension, but Didier Drogba serves the second of his three-match ban. Lampard, Sturridge, Terry and Mata should return to the starting line-up after being rested against Genk.

Conclusion

Blackburn are in all sorts of problems at the moment and they don’t look capable of beating one of the relegation strugglers let alone Chelsea. The Blues have suffered a small dip in form, but they should be able to return to the right track by inflicting Rovers the fifth defeat in six home games.

Verdict: Away win Chelsea (2)

Best Odds: 1/2

Bookmaker: William Hill