Chelsea and Southampton are set to meet on match day 27 for the second installment between them in the 2024-25 Premier League season
The first leg of this fixture ended in a comfortable 5-1 win for the Blues and this is another game they will be keen to win to keep up with the rest of the teams in the European places and title race.
As of the time of writing, Chelsea are ranked 2nd on the log with 34 points from 16 games, while Southampton are bottom of the log with just 5 points from the same number of games.
Chelsea have started reaping the decision to bring in Enzo Maresca after the work Mauricio Pochettino did last term. The former Leicester City boss has worked on his team to be competitive and they have posed a strong competition to some of the established teams in the division. With Maresca at the helm, the Blues have improved greatly and many have tipped them to mount a title challenge.
Chelsea lost 2-0 to Manchester City at Stamford Bridge in their season opener before going ahead to beat Servette on aggregate to reach the UEFA Conference League group stages. Noni Madueke then notched a hat-trick against Wolves to help the Blues claim their first Premier League win of the season.
The Stamford Bridge outfit continued to build from there and they went seven games without a defeat across all competitions. Maresca’s men won five of those games and drew the other two. A second Premier League loss of the season came when they travelled to Anfield to face Liverpool. As of the time of writing, they have not lost in the league again, but they have been knocked out of the Carabao Cup, while they have maintained their 100% winning streak in the Conference League.
After beating Brentford at Stamford Bridge in early December, Maresca ruled Chelsea out as one of the title challengers despite his side being just two points behind Liverpool on the log at the time of writing.
“No matter how many games we are going to win, I think we are not ready to compete for the title. One of the reasons why is because I think [other] teams know how to compete for titles.
“They are not going to concede the goal we conceded. We conceded the goal on 90 minutes, throw-in for us, we conceded a goal. A team that knows how to win titles, that goal they are not going to concede. This is one of the reasons why I continue to say we are not ready for titles, even if you don’t believe me or you think that I say that for… I’ve told you many times I would love the pressure to compete for titles but we are not ready for many reasons; one of the reasons why is because we cannot concede the goal we conceded, open the game and give them the chance to take a point here.”
At the time of writing, Chelsea are on a seven-game winning streak and are one of the strong contenders for the Premier League title regardless of the talks by the Blues manager and his players.
Meanwhile, Southampton have been terrible in the Premier League this season. No surprise they sit rock-bottom of the English top flight with 13 losses.
Under Russell Martin, the Saints have been disappointing. They had to wait until their fifth game of the season before getting their first point of the campaign, and it was against their fellow relegation fighters Ipswich Town. But after that, they suffered losses to Bournemouth, Arsenal, Leicester City, Manchester City and co.
Southampton got their first win of the campaign at the start of November, after defeating Everton 1-0. However, they suffered back-to-back losses to Liverpool and fellow strugglers Wolverhampton Wanderers. The Saints have been notorious for committing errors at the back due to their setup, and the lack of improvement has eventually cost Martin his job. The Saints lost 5-0 at home to Tottenham in mid-December and the club, who are currently bottom of the log, are looking for another manager to take them further and possibly lead them to safety.
In the head-to-head, Chelsea and Southampton have met 46 times since 1995. Chelsea have won 26, Southampton have won 8 and the remaining 12 have been stalemates.
Match tickets
This match at Stamford Bridge in London kicks off on Wednesday 26th February 2025, at 19:45 GMT.
The 40,341-capacity stadium is the place for this clash between the Blues and the Saints.
Getting Chelsea v Southampton tickets could take a lot of work given the standard of this game. Hence, you are advised to search ticket reselling sites should they be expectedly sold out on each club’s channels.
Team news
Line-ups
Robert Sanchez, despite his numerous errors, has been the number-one goalkeeper in Premier League games under Maresca. The efficient Caicedo will be relied upon in this fixture, while a rejuvenated Enzo could be given another start. Meanwhile, skipper Reece James remains a regular in the physio’s room at the time of writing.
Chelsea XI: Sanchez; Gusto, Fofana, Colwill, Cucurella; Lavia, Caicedo; Madueke, Palmer, Neto; Jackson
Meanwhile, Southampton have a few injury problems of their own. First, the first-choice goalkeeper Gavin Bazunu remains a long-term absentee after an Achilles tendon injury in April. That will keep him out of action until February 2025 at least.
Aaron Ramsdale is also healing, following an operation on his finger. Jan Bednarek is also a source of concern, as he is struggling with a thigh injury. The other team players who are suffering from slight injuries should return just in time for the fixture.
Southampton XI: McCarthy (GK) — Walker-Peters, Sugawara, Stephens, Harwood-Bellis, Manning — Armstrong, Downes, Aribo, Fernandes — Archer
Prediction
The Blues are one of the front runners for one of the UEFA Champions League spots, while they could also be considered as one of the outsiders to win the Premier League. For the fans, getting your Chelsea tickets early is important.
Meanwhile, Southampton are already down on the log and will need some serious improvement in terms of performance to change their position.
Given what the two teams have done this term, this should be another easy win for the Blues at Stamford Bridge.
Chelsea 3-0 Southampton