“There are so many questions” - Chris Sutton predicts Chelsea vs Fulham and makes interesting Jorginho claim
Former Premier League footballer Chris Sutton has backed Chelsea to win their upcoming league fixture against Fulham on Friday, February 3. The Englishman has predicted a 2-1 scoreline for the London derby.
Chelsea's first encounter with Fulham in the Premier League this term also produced a similar scoreline, though it was the Cottagers who managed to take home all three points thanks to goals from Willian and Carlos Vinicius.
The match saw Kalidou Koulibaly get on the scoresheet for the Blues as newly signed (on-loan) forward Joao Felix received a red card along with a one-month suspension.
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Speaking about the previous fixture, Sutton told BBC Sport:
"These two sides met a few weeks ago, when new Chelsea signing Joao Felix was sent off on his debut and Fulham won 2-1. This time? Well, who knows how Chelsea will line up on Friday with all their new signings - including Enzo Fernandez, the £107m man."
Touching upon Jorginho's £12 million transfer to Arsenal on deadline day, he added:
"Jorginho started their last game, against Liverpool on 21 January, and he has now joined Arsenal. Hakim Ziyech and Conor Gallagher were also in the team at Anfield and they were linked with moves away - especially Ziyech, who thought he was on his way to Paris St-Germain. Surely he won't be involved?"
Sutton continued:
"There are so many questions and there is simply no way Blues boss Graham Potter can know what his best team is now. I do like the look of Mykhailo Mudryk, who is incredibly quick, but selling Jorginho is very odd, even with his contract running out in the summer. All of this makes it very difficult to make a prediction."
The Englishman concluded:
"Fulham have lost their last two league games, without playing that badly, and with a settled team they should definitely play the more fluid football. But maybe this is the moment Potter's luck turns and he gets a break for the first time at Stamford Bridge. That's what I'm going with, anyway!"
Chelsea boss Graham Potter will certainly be looking to turn around his side's poor form this season in the Fulham clash, with the club currently in tenth place in the standings.
"The external noise goes up" - Graham Potter speaks on Chelsea spending spree ahead of Fulham clash
In a pre-match press conference, Graham Potter spoke about Chelsea's extravagant January transfer window that saw their spending exceed £300 million.
The Blues signed eight players in January, including World Cup winner Enzo Fernandez for a British record fee of £105 million.
When asked whether the pressure has now increased, Potter said (via football.london):
"If you spend money, the external noise goes up. Resources are one thing, but you need to align them, make the right decisions, create an environment."
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