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Chelsea vs QPR Preview : Blues Favorites To Win The First EPL Derby of 2013.

Unlike the last couple of meetings between these two teams, the pre match talk this time around will not have anything to do with John Terry or Anton Ferdinand. Chelsea Captain John Terry has a knee injury and will be sidelined for the game while Ferdinand might not be in the starting XI. 

 

Chelsea : 

Petr Cech made his 400th appearance for Chelsea against Everton a few days back but he has 399 starts to his name. His 400th start however will not be against QPR as he injured himself in the Everton game and is out due to an adductor problem.

John Obi Mikel missed the Everton match due to a last minute knee injury. But the Chelsea medical staff have given him the clear and he now has to pass a fitness test if he’ll want to start the game.

He will not be missed much if he fails to be 100% fit as Chelsea’s new found midfield hero David Luiz is combining brilliantly with the club loyal Frank Lampard who certainly looks like he has a point to prove.

After being told to find a new club coming summer, Frank Lampard single handedly won the game for the Blues by scoring both the goals in the match. There were also banners during the match which sent messages to club owner Roman Abramovich not to let him go. But if Lampard continues to perform like this, Roman will be under huge pressure to offer him a new contract.

Chelsea were the league toppers till October but a dismal November saw them fall down to the 3rd spot. But the Blues have sorted their problems under their new manager and they’ve won their last 4 matches and have won a couple of them with big margins. If they are to challenge the clubs from Manchester they will need to win such games and cannot afford any slip ups.

Most of Chelsea’s starting line up is predictable but for the attacking midfield players. Mata is a sure starter but Oscar,Moses,Hazard and Ramires will all fight for the 2 remaining spots.

Possible XI, 4-2-3-1 :

Turnbull;

Azpilicueta, Ivanovic, Cahill, Cole;

Luiz, Lampard,

Moses; Mata, Oscar;

Torres.

 

Queen’s Park Rangers :  

Rock bottom in the table. Every team would want to play against them at the moment. Hot favorites to be relegated. 

But when QPR face Chelsea, anything can happen. It all depends on which QPR team turns up on the day. If the team which plays tight at the back and does not let in an early goal turns up( like earlier this season), then they will cause Chelsea problems. But if they let in an early goal then they could be in for a long long day. This was what happened to them in the corresponding fixture last season.

Rafa will be the 13th different manager in Chelsea colors to face Harry Redknapp. And Redknapp has just 2 victories out of 22 against the Blues. The way Rafa got the team back on track, in all likeliness it could well be another defeat for Harry.

QPR have no fresh injury doubts.
Strikers Andrew Johnson (knee) and Bobby Zamora (hip) are sidelined with long-term injuries while Park Ji Sung will have to pass a late fitness test. The other players who are also sidelined are Dyer and Bosingwa.

Possible XI 4-2-3-1 :

Cesar;

Onuoha, Nelsen, Hill, Traoré;

Mbia, Diakité;

Mackie, Taarabt, Wright-Phillips;

Cissé.

 

Prediction : 

Chelsea should not only win this game but they should win it big. There are too many problems in the QPR camp and at Stamford Bridge, they just don’t look capable of taking any points from the game. 

Chelsea 4-0 QPR

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