Chelsea are to entertain Fulham in a West London derby in the English Premier League at Stamford Bridge on Boxing Day.
The home side saw their impressive winning streak halted by a tenacious Everton on Sunday and the Cottagers were also held to a barren encounter with already relegated Southampton.
Having scored five top flight wins consecutively, the longest of the division this season, Chelsea were brought back down to earth on Sunday when they were held by a stubborn Everton to a 0-0 stalemate.
This was the first defeat of the season for Enzo Maresca’s men since the 1-1 draw with Arsenal before the November break and the first league match in which they were held goalless at home.
On paper, a run of five games against Fulham, Ipswich Town, Crystal Palace, Bournemouth and Wolves should give Chelsea the opportunity to take Liverpool on into the new year, but there any slip up could be very costly there.
Many have been pleasantly surprised with Chelsea recent form though, their 35 points are in fact the lowest amount of points for any second placed side at the Christmas period since 2010, which just shows how competitive and tight the Premier League has been so far.
We will not be worried that Chelsea lost their last two of three previous matches on Boxing Day, because they are unstoppable against Fulham in Stamford Bridge and have not lost to them since 1979 year.
Positive sign is that the team had won only 2 of the last 11 matches when they played against the clubs based in London on Boxing Day both the victories were in the championship seasons of 2005-2006 and 2014-2015.
However, with Silva's team having only won one of their past six games, draws are getting too frequent, and Chelsea is not the best opponent for them to try to improve that record.
Fulham has only won twice in 34 Premier League encounters, giving them the lowest victory percentage of any team against an opponent in the history of the Premier League among teams that have played each other at least 20 times.
Having only won two of his previous ten meetings with the Blues' prospective opponents, manager Silva likewise has a dismal record against them during his time with Fulham, Watford, and Everton.
Marc Cucurella's return from suspension should result in a more conventional back four for Chelsea following some defensive shifting that saw Malo Gusto move to the left and Axel Disasi take over at right-back for Everton.
Reece James and Wesley Fofana are still sidelined with hamstring ailments, but Romeo Lavia may be ready to return after Maresca stated that the Everton match would be too soon for the Belgian midfielder.
Josh King, a teenager who made his Premier League debut on Sunday, may be replaced by Andreas Pereira, who will at least return from suspension. Pereira did well in his debut.
Both Reiss Nelson and Kenny Tete have lately suffered injuries that will keep them out of action until at least February. Raul Jimenez and Rodrigo Muniz, who entered the game against the Saints, will be chosen up front.
