Prediction: West Bromwich vs Chelsea



Verdict: Chelsea/Chelsea

Best Odds: 1/1

Bookmaker: bet365

Leaders Chelsea travel to the Hawthorns knowing that a win would secure the Premier League trophy and they will fancy their chances of defeating out-of-sorts West Bromwich. The Baggies are still on course to achieve a top table finish, but they have just ended a four-match losing run, and it remains to be seen whether they can spoil the party for the Blues.

West Bromwich

West Bromwich appear to be on the road to become a genuine mid table side and they did really well to avoid the relegation tussle altogether this season. And while some fans have problems with Tony Pulis’ style of play that is not exactly easy on the eye, they cannot deny that the manager has done much better than his predecessors, with the Baggies currently occupying eighth position in the overall standings. It would appear as though West Brom took their foot off the pedal after securing Premier League survival with nine games to spare, and nobody is too surprised by their latest run of results. Four successive defeats in which the Baggies failed to score a single goal were, however, a cause for concern in spite of the successful season, and the team showed some improvement to hold Burnley to a 2-2 draw last weekend. West Brom will have much bigger fish to fry this time out as Chelsea arrive at the Hawthorns hoping to clinch the Premier League trophy and we seriously doubt the Baggies will turn out to be party poopers no matter how much they will want to.

Team News

While Matt Phillips and Hal Robson-Kanu remain sidelined, defender Jonny Evans faces a fitness test ahead of the clash against Chelsea.



Chelsea

This season has been a resounding success for both Chelsea and their manager Antonio Conte, who wasted no time in correcting the mistakes of Jose Mourinho’s reign and getting the team back to playing to their best. If we disregard the minor bumps in the road that were always inevitable, the Blues have been the best side in the league bar none and they deserve to be crowned champions. Even if second-placed Spurs win their remaining games, Chelsea will only need one victory to secure the Premier League trophy and they will obviously attempt to get the job done at the Hawthorns even though they will have another two easy home games after said match. Comfortable triumphs over Southampton, Everton and Middlesbrough went to suggest that Chelsea players were fully focused on task at hand and we have no doubts they will take the West Brom game seriously as well. Playing with a great deal of confidence, the Blues should have no problems outclassing the out-of-sorts Baggies and fourth successive comfortable victory appears on the cards.

Team News

Star midfielder N’Golo Kante is rated doubtful as he battles a minor injury, but there are no other selection worries for manager Antonio Conte.

Key Factors to Consider

• Chelsea won their last four games by 2 goals or more
• The Blues won five of last six away fixtures
• West Bromwich failed to score in four of last five (D1 L4)
• Chelsea won three of last five games vs West Brom (D1 L1)
• The Blues will be crowned champions if they win

Conclusion

West Bromwich are going through a very rough patch and with nothing to play for, we don’t think they can stop Chelsea from celebrating the Premier League trophy at the Hawthorns. The Blues have been on fire of late and we expect them to record an easy win.

Verdict: Chelsea/Chelsea

Best Odds: 1/1

Bookmaker: bet365