By Ian S. Palmer
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The big news out of Stamford Bridge came on December 17 when it was announced that Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho had been fired. The club hasn’t announced a replacement yet, so it’s not sure who will be in charge when the London team hosts Sunderland this Saturday, December 19. This is the second time the Portuguese manager has been sacked by the team and it shouldn’t come as much of a surprise to most fans. Chelsea has lost nine of their 16 games this season after winning the Premier League title by eight points last campaign.
Chelsea vs Sunderland – Pinnacle SOCCER BETTING LINE:
- Pinnacle currently lists Chelsea as the favorite at -333 with Sunderland +1194 and a draw at +476
Chelsea vs Sunderland – Head to Head
- Chelsea beat Sunderland 3-1 at home last season and were held to a 0-0 draw in Sunderland. Sunderland has won just two of their past 21 league games against the Blues with a draw and 18 defeats. However, Chelsea has just one win in their past four encounters in all competitions with a draw and two losses Chelsea’s Diego Costa has scored three goals in four league contests against Sunderland. The two teams have met 121 times in the past with Chelsea winning 58, losing 41 and drawing 22.
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Chelsea lost 2-1 at league-leading Leicester City on Monday night and now sit 20 points behind them in the standings. The squad has earned just four points out of the last 21 available with a win and a draw in their past seven contests. The only victory was at home against newly-promoted Norwich City. Sunderland enters the game on a two-match losing streak and is firmly entrenched in the relegation zone with just one road win all season long.
Chelsea enters the weekend in 16th place in the 20-team league with four wins, three draws and nine losses for 15 points. They’ve scored 18 goals and allowed 26 against. At home, they’ve played eight times and have three wins, a draw and four losses with 10 goals for and 11 against. Chelsea has posted four clean sheets this season, but have also been shut out four times. Sunderland dropped a 1-0 decision to Watford at home last weekend and enter the game in 19th place. They have 12 points from three victories, three draws and 10 defeats.
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Sunderland has just one win, a draw and six losses away from home with eight goals for and 21 against and have allowed the most shot on net in the league. The team has three clean sheets to its name and has been shut out half a dozen times. They have one win and five losses in their past six road outings. Chelsea is definitely struggling too though since they’ve lost as many games already this season as they did in the last two years combined. Chelsea lost just once in their first 99 league games with Mourinho in charge and it came against Sunderland. However, they’ve now lost four of their past seven home encounters and have a lone victory in their past seven games overall. They’ve also scored just twice in their past five league matches.
Several Chelsea players will be happy with Mourinho’s dismissal since he alienated them this season along with getting on the bas side of other staff members. If their goal was to get Mourinho fired they’ve succeeded and it will be interesting to see if they can turn their season around starting on Saturday. Sunderland may be without Sebastian Coates for the game while the rest of the squad is expected to be healthy enough to dress. Chelsea may have Eden Hazard back while Radamel Falcao is expected to miss the game.
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