Both clubs find themselves in the bottom half of the Premier League standings and must get their respective campaigns up and running.
The September international break will have given Bournemouth and Chelsea enough time to strategize during the first pause of the campaign as either side looks to kick on in a promising season. Bournemouth are desperate to record their first league win under Andoni Iraola and they will be hoping it comes in the form of a big scalp against the Blues.
The Cherries kicked off the season with a late equalizer earning a 1-1 draw against West Ham – the only time the Hammers have dropped points so far, before falling to defeats against Liverpool and Tottenham. They did well to come back from a goal down at Brentford until a late Bryan Mbeumo goal snatched a point for a 2-2 draw last time out.
Bournemouth have enjoyed some memorable victories against Chelsea since their first-ever promotion to the top flight in 2015, but a majority of those were away as they’ve only beaten the Blues once at home (a 4-0 thrashing of Maurizio Sarri’s men in January 2019).
Nevertheless, the South Coast side will be encouraged by the alarming form of their opponents who have taken just nine points from 12 Premier League away games in 2023.
Chelsea are enduring an indifferent start to the season under Mauricio Pochettino as their impressive display against Liverpool on opening day has not been followed up, with a disappointing 3-1 defeat away to West Ham preceding a first win against Luton Town before another downer of a home loss to Nottingham Forest.
That 1-0 defeat came in a terrible performance that was reminiscent of last season’s struggles as Chelsea controlled the game but somehow failed to score while gifting opponents an easy opportunity at the other end. Pochettino’s men are now 12th on the table having only mustered four points from a possible 12.
Chelsea are desperate to return to winning ways and will be keen to improve their concentration levels after conceding the opening goal in four of their five matches in all competitions this season. The Blues have the upper hand in this fixture after winning seven and drawing one of their 12 matches against the Cherries, they completed the league double over Bournemouth despite their struggles last season and Pochettino will be hoping for more of the same after the international break.
Match tickets
The match at the Vitality Stadium kicks off on Saturday 17th September, at 2 pm UK time and it will be shown live on Sky Sports Main Event, with coverage starting from around 7 PM.
The campaign is expected to resume to much fanfare after a two-week pause and the 11,307-capacity arena at Dean’s Court should provide ample entertainment. Par for the course, Chelsea would have a strong contingent cheering their every move as the away side have received an official allocation of 1,318 tickets for this game.
Bournemouth do enjoy a game against Chelsea and their players as well as fans should be up for it. Getting tickets for Bournemouth vs Chelsea tickets will be difficult given the limited capacity at the ground and the amount of supporters who are interested in the match. Hence, you are advised to search ticket reselling sites should they be expectedly sold out on each club’s channels.
Team news
Tyler Adams and Emiliano Marcondes are yet to feature this season and Bournemouth will be hoping to get their new signing back to full fitness soon enough.
Adam Smith returned to the bench last time out and Dango Outtara could also return to the squad against Chelsea, but Bournemouth will be without Alex Scott and Ryan Fredericks.
Chelsea have a mixed bag on the fitness front as Wesley Fofana, Christopher Nkunku, Carney Chukwuemeka, Marcus Bettinelli and Trevoh Chalobah are all injured. Romeo Lavia will also have to wait for his Chelsea debut after hurting his ankle during a training session but the length of his absence is yet to be determined.
Armando Broja and Benoit Badiashile are back in full training and should make the matchday squad for the first time this season.
Meanwhile, Reece James is close to recovering from a hamstring injury but may be left out against Bournemouth in order to prevent aggravating the problem.
Line-ups
Dominic Solanke has found the net twice in the Premier League this season – half of Bournemouth’s total tally – and will be hoping to put his former employers to the sword and help the Cherries secure a much-needed win.
Elsewhere, David Brooks is also pushing for a start after coming off the bench to score in the entertaining draw with Brentford before the international break. The Wales international also grabbed a goal in their previous EFL Cup second-round tie against Swansea and would be looking to build on his momentum.
Bournemouth: Neto; Aarons, Zabarnyi, Senesi, Kerkez; Rothwell, Christie; Brooks, Billing, Kluivert; Solanke
Chelsea’s back-three has been a surprise given Nkunku’s untimely injury as it has forced Ben Chilwell to fill in as a left winger. The resulting imbalance and perceived defensive mindset has irked Chelsea fans who want to see their team scoring goals.
This means the likes of Mykhailo Mudryk, Noni Madueke and new signing Cole Palmer are all in contention to start alongside Raheem Sterling who is Chelsea’s strongest attacking option and is certain to start having missed out on an England call-up this month.
Chelsea: Sanchez; Gusto, Silva, Colwill, Chilwell; Caicedo, Enzo; Madueke, Palmer, Sterling; Jackson
Prediction
The Londoners would be hoping for much better fortunes because, since a win at the Vitality in May, Chelsea have lost their last three away matches and have taken just nine Premier League points on the road in 2023. Hence, Bournemouth will look to punish a defence that has kept just one clean sheet across all competitions this season.
Although Iraola’s side have seen 12 goals scored in their four games, the Cherries conceded eight of those and Chelsea will look to outscore them after going unbeaten in their last three head-to-head meetings.
Bournemouth 1-3 Chelsea
