Chelsea have managed to finish in the top four of the Premier League and now they will have the chance to end the season on a high by winning the Champions League.
The Blue take on Manchester City in the Champions League final this weekend and Thomas Tuchel will have the chance to pick up his first major silverware since taking charge of the club a couple of weeks ago.
Chelsea have improved in leaps and bounds over the past couple of months under their new manager but it’s Manchester City they will be facing so despite all the good performances, the London side will still go into this game as the underdogs.
Thomas Tuchel has a few injury concerns to deal with but they are undefeated in 11 of their last 12 matches in the UCL and have also been solid defensively during the second half of the season. So if any team can stop Manchester City from scoring that will be Chelsea.
Chelsea team news vs Manchester City:
Edouard Mendy will be the first big injury doubt after the player picked up a knock last weekend. The manager is still optimistic about his selection in the final but if Mendy is not fit then Arrizabalaga will come back in front of goal.
Tuchel said earlier this week: ‘With Edou, the update is that we still have hope that he will join in with training on Wednesday with the group.
‘He made a huge improvement with the management of pain from when the injury happened, which is good but of course we will need a further update on Wednesday. We hope to have him back.‘
N’Golo Kante is another player who is recovering from an injury but we hope the French international should be fit in time to feature in the starting XI alongside Jorginho.
The manager does have Mateo Kovacic as a backup but if Kante is fully fit then Kovacic will have to start on the bench.
Christensen remained an unused sub against Aston Villa last Sunday but the defender is likely to come back into the side, playing in the three-man central defence.
Reece James will be the apt player to operate as the right wing-back but since Chelsea will be playing against Manchester City, Tuchel is likely to use Azpilicueta in that role.
Mason Mount will play as the attacking midfielder but we will have to wait and see if the manager chooses Pulisic or Ziyech as his partner. Pulisic had a pretty decent outing against Villa, providing an assist so it will not be a big surprise if the manager uses him once again.
Kai Havertz will be pushing for a place in the starting line-up but Thomas Tuchel is likely to put his faith in Timo Werner. The manager will be relying on Werner to use his pace and get behind Ruben Dias and John Stones.
Chelsea’s predicted XI vs Man City:
Predicted XI: Mendy/Kepa; Rudiger, Thiago Silva, Christensen; Kante, Thiago Silva, Chilwell, Azpilicueta; Mason Mount, Pulisic, Timo Werner.
