Prediction: Chelsea vs Sunderland

13th November 2010

Chelsea extended their lead to four points after the narrow victory in the London derby against Fulham and the Blues should have another easy match at Stamford Bridge. Sunderland, on the other hand, held on to one point at White Hart Lane and they now hope to create yet another surprise and stop Chelsea from winning this game.

Chelsea started the title defence with virtually the same squad from last season and that would prove to be one of their biggest qualities. The easy fixture list in the opening games helped the Blues hit the ground running from the very start and they just kept building on their impressive results. Carlo Ancelotti’s side weren’t too downhearted by derby defeats to City and Liverpool, but they rather quickly returned to winning ways, with the good performances in first 12 games seeing them create a four-point cushion at the top. The home triumph over Fulham restored some of the lost confidence in the Liverpool defeat and we should see same old Chelsea against Sunderland. Carlo Ancelotti faces some selection problems going into this game since Michael Essien starts his three-match ban, while Alex, Lampard and Benayoun all miss out. The good thing is Nicolas Anelka has recovered from a back injury and is set to start up front alongside Didier Drogba.

Seeing how much money Sunderland have invested in the playing squad over the last few years, the Black Cats should now be fighting for at least the top 4 finish, but the reality is much different. Steve Bruce’s side do currently sit in 8th place but they are just five points clear of the relegation zone, so their results are not so impressive after all. Oddly enough, the Black Cats fared pretty well against the best sides in the league but struggled against the bottom table teams, and no one really knows what to expect of them. Nonetheless, even after getting one point from White Hart Lane, they are unlikely to cause too much problems to high-flying Chelsea and should instead be preparing for much more important games that will come along. Without Darren Bent, the Black Cats will be toothless in attack, while we cannot really expect them to keep a clean sheet at Stamford Bridge, can we? Besides Bent, John Mensah, Anton Ferdinand, Frazier Campbell and David Meyler are also unavailable.

Conclusion

Having won all six home games this season, keeping a clean sheet in every one of those and scoring 17 goals in the process, Chelsea have no reason to fear a side like Sunderland and everything suggests they will win this game with few goals to spare. The Black Cats have done well against the Top 4 sides so far, but the trend looks likely to end at Stamford Bridge.

Verdict: Home win Chelsea (1)

Best Odds: 1/4

Bookmaker: Victor Chandler