Chelsea v Wolves odds

 

Chelsea V Wolverhampton Wanderers

Date & Kick-Off: Saturday, 26 November 2011 – 15:00 GMT

Venue: Stamford Bridge

 

Preview

It has been nothing but heartache and misery for Chelsea ever since the international break, but on Saturday they’ll be presented with a fabulous opportunity to relocate the winning track when they welcome Wolves to Stamford Bridge.

The Blues have an almost immaculate record in this fixture, winning five of the previous six Premier League meetings, with the only blemish occurring in their most recent encounter, at Molineux, back in January, when the West Londoners slumped to a 1-0 loss. They are well odds-on to exact some revenge at Stamford Bridge though, where they’ve won all three previous encounters, scoring eleven times in the process.

However, The Bridge is no longer the fortress of old for Chelsea. Both Arsenal and Liverpool have won there recently and a win for Wolves would make it three successive home defeats for Andre Villas-Boas’ men, which would be the club’s worst run at home since 1993.

So, avoiding the record books will be one of many incentives for Chelsea, whereas Wolves are merely striving to avoid slipping into the relegation zone. Shouldn’t be any lack of commitment then, from both sides, but surely this won’t be a close-run thing?

 

Chelsea

League Position: 5th

League Form: WLLWL

Not even six months in and already some are calling for the Chelsea manager’s head. It is very Chelsea-like, but still, ridiculous, all of it. The man isn’t going anywhere, certainly not any time soon. So it’s a case of perseverance from here on out, as this is one manager Roman Abramovich cannot afford to make a loss on having shelled out somewhere in the region of £10million for his services during the summer.

Worrying times though, that is for sure. It’s difficult to really know where to start. Sunday’s loss to Liverpool? That was their second on the spin at Stamford Bridge in the league. They haven’t lost three in succession since 1993. It was also their third in four Premier League games, home and away. Performance-wise, they were poor; devoid of ideas in midfield, lacking any real presence up front as Drogba led the line instead of Fernando Torres, while yet again their defensive frailties were exposed in front of a live audience.

Moving on to Wednesday’s dire outcome in the Champions League, a competition they may not be involved with for too much longer. A 2-1 loss in Germany to Bayer Leverkusen has left Chelsea’s qualification hopes in tatters. Well, not quite, but only victory in their final group game, at home to a Valencia side who need only a draw to qualify, will now suffice. I’m sure most Chelsea fans will just want to unleash a scream at this point.

So what response do Andre Villas-Boas and Chelsea have? Throw Torres back into the fold and pray the Spaniard rekindles his love for hitting the net? Perhaps even alter formation? Increase the numbers in the middle so that Chelsea actually look balanced? I’m honestly not sure. And, to be perfectly honest, I’m not entirely sure whether their response on Saturday will be all that positive. Gone the days when the Blues would bounce back with aplomb following a defeat.

 

Wolves

League Position: 17th

League Form: LDLWL

The last thing any team struggling for form and consistency needs is injuries to key personnel, but that is the predicament facing Wolves boss Mick McCarthy. His side have made a truly woeful start to the campaign, winning just three matches all season, and only one of their last ten, so to be missing midfield duo Jamie O’Hara and Stephen Hunt is a monumental blow to their chances of earning a result at Stamford Bridge.

Both O’Hara and Hunt will serve one-match bans on Saturday, meaning Mick McCarthy has little option but to shuffle his pack. O’Hara is the one who pulls all the strings for Wolves in midfield while Hunt has scored in each of his team’s last two away matches, in defeats to Man City and Everton, albeit both coming from the spot.

Young Adam Hammill and Matt Jarvis are likely replacements, decent ones at that, two players who have been disappointed by a lack of first-team football this season but will be eager to make an impression in a big fixture, an exciting fixture. In actual fact, a fixture Wolves were exceptional in last season, despite losing by two clear goals. Yet a repeat of that particular performance and they would go close, as Chelsea this time round are wobbling.

Last season, Wolves had a knack of raising their level of performance for the big occasion. To record victories over Chelsea, Liverpool, Man City and Man Utd in the same campaign is an unbelievable achievement, and proof that they won’t simply turn up at The Bridge and make up the numbers. They’re going there to compete, even if they are slightly depleted.

 

Match Pointers

- Before losing 1-0 at Molineux back in January, Chelsea had won all five previous Premier League meetings with Wolves, by an overwhelming aggregate of 18-2 as well.

- It has been eighteen years since Chelsea last suffered three successive home league defeats, a dismal run that they would equal should they lose at home to Wolves on Saturday having previously lost their last two home matches against Arsenal (3-5) and Liverpool (1-2).

- Three defeats in their last four Premier League matches has resulted in Chelsea slipping to fifth in the table, three points behind fourth placed Newcastle and twelve adrift of the league leaders.

- Chelsea haven’t kept a clean sheet at home in the Premier League since April, conceding at least one goal in each of their previous eight at Stamford Bridge.

- Wolves occupy the last position of safety down in 17th, where they sit two points above the relegation places meaning defeat at Stamford Bridge could see them drop into the bottom three.

- Mick McCarthy’s side have won just one of their last ten league matches (W1 D2 L7), and are currently on a run of four consecutive away defeats.

 

Betting

The class of Manchester City tolled when Wolves paid the league leaders a visit at the end of October, but the Midlands side gave a good account of themselves – as they invariably do against the top teams in the country – and a performance of a similar ilk could see them spring a major surprise at Stamford Bridge, where all the pressure will be on a host desperate to avoid the ignominy of a third consecutive home Premier League defeat.

The pressure on Chelsea right now, and in particular Andre Villas-Boas, is enormous; the entire media will be waiting with baited for their next wrong move. A home fixture with Wolves is a golden opportunity for them to ease some of the pressure, though more importantly to get that winning feeling running through their veins again, as they haven’t experienced much of that – winning – in recent weeks.

Yet I sense it may be the team in Gold which salivate over a famous result. There’s enough talent in the Chelsea ranks to blow Wolves off the park, but the one characteristic Wolves have an abundance of that the Blues certainly do no is spirit, and a great team ethic. An industrious performance combined with some sleek counter-attacking football has become thee recipe for success against Chelsea, and you can count on Mick McCarthy implementing something along those lines.

I don’t think Wolves have enough fortitude and resolve to hold out for the victory, but they may battle to a share of the spoils. That in itself would be a major upset, and a huge setback for Chelsea.

Match Outcome: Draw – 11/2 Ladbrokes

Value Bet: Chelsea/Draw (HT/FT) – 33/1 Coral

 

Match Odds

Chelsea – 1/4 PaddyPower

Draw – 11/2 Ladbrokes

Wolves – 14/1 Bet365

Chelsea V Wolves

Saturday, 23rd October – 15:00 (GMT)
Venue: Stamford Bridge

 

Chelsea

League Position: 1st
League Form: WWLWD

The 2010/2011 Premier League campaign has been littered with shocks and surprise, but a slip-up from Chelsea this weekend at home to struggling Wolves really would rank right up their with the Man Utd draw with West Brom last weekend and the Blackpool defeat of Liverpool three weeks ago. Carlo Ancelotti is the man who must guard his players against complacency, but with the Blues missing a whole host of key players for Saturday’s home encounter Wolves, perhaps Chelsea aren’t quite as full proof as we like to think?

Nevertheless, the confidence in camp should be sky-high following the team’s accomplished performance out in Russia in midweek in the UEFA Champions League. Chelsea made light work of a difficult assignment out in Moscow, where the cold conditions were made even more unbearable by Luzhniki’s famous plastic pitch. Fortunately, the players returned home without too much lasting damage, and could even welcome back the likes of Ramires, Didier Drogba and Frank Lampard for Saturday’s meeting with Wolves at Stamford Bridge, where they haven’t dropped a single point in the league since February when losing 4-2 at home to Manchester City, the club’s nemesis it would seem.

You have to cast your minds back to February the 7th, 2009 for Chelsea’s last slip-up at home to a relegation candidate, when they drew 0-0 with Hull City. And that pretty much spells out just how much of a formality Saturday’s fixture with Wolves should be, especially as this season Chelsea have been overwhelming their opponents at the Bridge. West Brom, Stoke City, Blackpool and Arsenal, three of which are teams fairly similar in standard to Wolves, have visited Stamford Bridge already this season in the league and have aided the Blues in building a formidable goal difference of 14-0. Even the silky brilliance of Arsenal couldn’t find a war round the league’s leanest defence, so there shouldn’t be a hope in hell of Wolves squirming one past Czech shot-stopper Petr Cech, who hasn’t conceded a league goal at the Bridge in over 650 minutes – over 10 hours of football – incredible stuff, it really is.

The only real hiccup with a Chelsea bet, not that we would recommend anyone to delve into their extremely slim match odds but more along the lines of eyeing up the Blues on the Asian Handicap, is that several are either nursing injuries or have only just returned from nasty niggles. Drogba has missed Chelsea’s last two games with an illness but is expected to return on Saturday – Mick McCarthy must be delighted with that news – while there’s even the small possibility of Frank Lampard returning to play a bit-part role. Salomon Kalou played his first competitive match since the middle of September in Moscow on Tuesday and looked very sprightly and energetic, one of the better players on the field in fact, as was Nicolas Anelka. So even if Chelsea are missing a few key players, there’s enough quality in reserve to ensure they don’t come a cropper in a fixture they should be winning with their eyes closed.

 

Wolves

League Position: 18th
League Form: LLLLD

Ah, just what any team needs when they cannot buy a league win at present: a trip to Stamford Bridge to take on the champions of England. Mick McCarthy and his players must be licking their lips at the prospect of facing a Chelsea side who have so far blitzed every single opponent who dare challenge their authority at the Bridge this season, especially seeing as Chelsea have amassed nine goals in their last two home meetings with the Midlands club. Surely a walk in the park then?

A walk in the park it should be, for Chelsea of course. Wolves are in serious trouble right now, win less in their last five matches, stranded in the relegation zone and facing the toughest period of fixtures the club has probably ever seen. Manager Mick McCarthy claims his players are more than up for the fight, although even in a fisty-cuffs battles with the Blues, Wolves would still come out of the other side brandishing all the battle scars.

Wolves’ record in the Premier League this season currently weighs in at a very lethargic W1 D3 L4 having lost all but one of their away encounters to date. Their hard-fought draw at home to West Ham last weekend did at least stop the rot, where the side had lost their previous four league matches, but a fresh batch of defeats are set to arrive at McCarthy’s doorstep as matches with Man City, Man Utd and Arsenal loom just over the horizon. Points could be precious over the next month or so, so it’s important that Wolves at least remain upbeat and continue to plug away at it as any points earned over the next couple of matches will be points gained in the knowledge that easier fixtures await them further down the line.

So are Wolves 100% a forlorn hope on Saturday away to league leaders Chelsea? Never say never but anything less than a comprehensive defeat would be a genuine surprise unfortunately, although the positives for Wolves are that there is absolutely no pressure on them to obtain a result at Stamford Bridge. The underdog tag has worked wonders for so many small fish down the years and it could produce some magic from Mick McCarthy’s struggling Wolves side. But, though, you do get the feeling that unless Mick McCarthy and his charges can spring something extraordinary and oull a rabbit out of the hat, it could be another miserable day in London for the team which could very well end the weekend bottom of the table.

 

Match Prediction: Chelsea to WIN – 1.14 Boylesports

Wolves are in a right state at the moment and if they came away from this fixture with a low scoring defeat then they’ll have done remarkably well, as we’re envisaging an emphatic win for the current league leaders, who have recently seen their lead at the top reduced. Furthermore, what with their closet pursuers Man City taking on Arsenal the following day, there’s a glorious opportunity for the boys in Blue to pile some real pressure onto City, and Arsenal to some degree as the Gunners aren’t out of this title race either.

With morale low and results over the last month or so not being great, a trip to Stamford Bridge is the last thing Wolves need right now. We’re going big, Chelsea should win this game at a cantor and if they seize the initiative early on then this could turn into a rout very quickly.

Over/Under: Over 2.5 Goals – 1.40 Boylesports
First Goalscorer: Nicolas Anelka – 5.00 Coral
Correct Score: 5-0 Chelsea – 21.00 SkyBet

Selected Bet: Chelsea to Score 4 or More Goals – 3.10 SkyBet

 

Match Odds:

Chelsea – 1.14 Boylesports
Draw – 8.50 Bet365
Wolves – 23.00 BetFred

 

Chelsea V Wolverhampton Wanderers

 

Kick-off: Saturday 21st November – 15:00 GMT

Venue: Stamford Bridge

 

 

 

Chelsea

 

League Position: 1st

Recent Form: WLWWW

 

The Chelsea skipper, John Terry, is already dropping hints about the possibility of acquiring some new faces at the club in January but a bigger concern for the English centre-half should be his fitness. Terry should have captained England against Brazil last Saturday were it not for an Achilles injury. The injury is thought to be minor and he should be fit enough to face Wolves from the off, although, it’s hard to envisage the Chelsea back line coming under that much scrutiny during the course of the game against Wolves.

 

Chelsea went into the International break as the Premiership leaders and with a five point cushion over their London rivals, Arsenal. The Gunners have been in inspired form of late but Chelsea have shown no signs of crumbling under the pressure after three wins on the bounce, all without conceding a single goal. Blackburn (5-0), Bolton (0-4) & even Manchester United (1-0), all came up short against the Blues’ and anything but a win on Saturday would be a major shock and setback for Carlo Ancelotti’s team.

  

On the whole, Chelsea have been pretty sublime in the early part of the season, with the defeats away at Wigan & Villa now put down as a blip. Of the 12 fixtures this season, Chelsea have won 10, with six of those coming at Stamford Bridge. To make the task for Wolves sound even more daunting, Chelsea haven’t conceded a goal at home in over 450 minutes of football. Surprisingly, Hull City were the last and only team to score at The Bridge this season, with even the likes of Liverpool, Tottenham & Man Utd all failing to break through the strong Chelsea rearguard.

 

If Liverpool & Manchester United cannot score against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge then what chance do Wolves stand. 16-1 is Chelsea’s goalscoring record at home this season, with Chelsea averaging nearly 3 goals a game at The Bridge. A revitalised Didier Drogba is one of the reasons why Chelsea have been so prolific at home this season, with the Ivorian notching on 9 league goals for the season, four of which have come on home soil.

 

 

 

 

 

Wolverhampton Wanderers

 

League Position: 4th

Recent Form: LWDWL

  

A trip to Stamford Bridge to face one of Europe’s biggest sides is what you get excited about as a manager, that’s until the fixture actually comes about and then you start to understand the term ‘squeaky bum time’. With Chelsea dishing out a few thumpings at The Bridge already this season, some will feel that Mick McCarthy’s men will be lucky to escape with their pride still in tact, let alone actually take anything from the game. Nevertheless, there is a game to be won, in a matter of words.

  

The good news for Mick McCarthy, he doesn’t appear to have any fresh absentee’s after the international break, although that is mainly down to the fact that his squad isn’t wanted around the globe. The bad news is just that, McCarthy doesn’t have the required quality within the ranks to compete with the likes of Chelsea. However, McCarthy is a fighter, and he will do everything but throw in the towel as he aims to pull off a master-stroke by getting some form of a result out of this fixture.

  

What the newly promoted sides need heading into a game of this magnitude is good form, something for the opponent to think about, possibly even assert a bit of fear. Wolves, well, they would struggle to have my nephew’s Under 11′s team quaking in their boots. Since their victory over Fulham back in mid September, Wolves have picked up just three points from six games. That is fifteen dropped points, with three draws and three defeats. The positives are the 1-1 draws with Everton & Villa, while the negatives are the hammering’s they received by first Sunderland (5-2) and more recently, Arsenal (1-4).

 

We generally get punished whenever we completely write a team off but Wolves really shouldn’t get anywhere near the Chelski on Saturday. Their defence is woeful, shipping 22 goals in 12 outings, 12 of which have come on the road. While their lack of fire-power has shown in their goal tally of just 12, although 7 have come away from Molineux. Funnily enough, Wolves have managed to find the net in their previous four away outings but they won’t come up against a leaner defence than Chelsea’s all season. Expect their away goalscoring form to come to an abrupt end, as well as their goals against tally rising, perhaps considerably.

 

 

 

 

Head-to-Head:

 

Chelsea W: 2 Wolverhampton Wanderers W: 0 Draws: 0

 

With Wolves not a regular appearer in the English top flight, the pair have only had the pleasure of clashing on two occasions, back in the 2004/2004 season. However, unsurprisingly, Chelsea dominated both games, winning 5-2 at Stamford Bridge & 5-0 Molineux, scoring five goals in both meetings.

 

The pair haven’t met in a competitive fixture since that season so will Chelsea continue their dominance of Wolves or will the ‘Wolves’ have their day. The former looks the most likely, much to the displeasure of you loyal Wolves readers.

 

 

 

 

 

Match Verdict:- Chelsea to WIN – 1.17 Bet365

 

We won’t turn too many heads with this prediction and nor are we aiming to. Anything but a comfortable home win for the Blues’ would be a big shock as the gulf in class between then two is horrific. At Stamford Bridge, Chelsea have been unstoppable, maintaining a 100% record at home, while Wolves are fresh off a 4-1 hammering from Chelsea’s local rivals, Arsenal. A similar scoreline wouldn’t be at all surprising with the only factor possibly hindering Chelsea’s display is the mass returns of players from international duty.

 

 

 

 

Match Odds:

 

Chelsea – 1.17 Bet365

Draw – 8.00 SKyBet

Wolverhampton Wanderers – 21.00 PaddyPower

 

 

 

 

SoccerBetting Value Tip: Chelsea to WIN both Halves – 2.20 SkyBet

 

 

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Full-Time: Chelsea 4-0 Wolverhampton Wanderers

 

Goalscorer(s): Florent Malouda, Michael Essien X2, Joe Cole (Chelsea)