Bournemouth vs Chelsea Prediction: Can Blues Bounce Back?

• Chelsea’s Premier League title hopes were dented with defeat in midweek

• Bournemouth were also beaten in the recent round of fixtures in England

• What is the best option for sports bettors for this weekend’s game?

Bournemouth vs. Chelsea Odds

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My -125 Pick for Bournemouth vs Chelsea

Choose over 2.5 goals and both teams to score at the Vitality Stadium. Offenses are likely to get the better of defences in this one.

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Chelsea Must Deliver Improved Performance After Leeds Loss

Having turned in an impressive performance in a 1-1 draw with Arsenal despite playing most of the match with 10 men, Chelsea were widely expected to pick up all three points against relegation-threatened Leeds United in the midweek round of Premier League fixtures. Had they have done so, they would have remained six points shy of the summit of the standings.

Instead, Chelsea slumped to a 3-1 defeat at Elland Road. They could have few complaints. Indeed, even Enzo Maresca admitted afterwards that his team deserved to lose. The Blues were unable to match Leeds’s aggression, intensity and physicality, and their own possession-based game lacked fluidity. Chelsea were not just outfought by Leeds, they were outplayed by them too.

It was a reminder that, for all the talent within Maresca’s roster, this side does not look quite ready to mount a sustained title tilt. Chelsea have spent an enormous amount of money in recent years, yet much of it has gone on gifted prospects rather than finished articles. As such, Chelsea have the youngest squad in the Premier League. A degree of inconsistency is therefore to be expected.

Chelsea are not in a bad position at the beginning of December. They head into the weekend in fourth place, and Champions League qualification would be a decent outcome. Maresca would no doubt argue that he has not been in the job for as long as Unai Emery (Aston Villa), Pep Guardiola (Manchester City) or Mikel Arteta (Arsenal), the three teams and managers ahead of Chelsea at present. Still, he will want to see a reaction from his players against Bournemouth.

“I think they were better than us in all the aspects,” Maresca said after the loss to Leeds. “They deserved to win the game. There’s nothing we can take from the game. The only thing we can do is try to understand the mistakes we’ve made and try to reset.”

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Bournemouth Aiming to Recapture Form After Disappointing Run

The middle portion of the Premier League table is remarkably congested right now. Chelsea, for instance, are as close to Nottingham Forest in 15th as they are to Arsenal in first. Meanwhile Bournemouth are now 14th having been knocking on the door of the Champions League places just a few short weeks ago. 

After a strong start to the season, the Cherries have gone off the boil of late. Four of their last five matches have ended in defeat, with the other being a 2-2 draw with West Ham United. Their latest setback was arguably the most disappointing of the lot, as Andoni Iroala’s men went down to a 1-0 home defeat by Everton, who promptly leapfrogged them in the table.

“A lot of reasons,” Iraola said on Tuesday when asked why he thought his team’s form had dipped. “The other day we lost a game (3-2 to Sunderland) that we had a lot in our favour and also we lost five very important players for us. In the middle we lacked energy, [Ryan] Christie, [Lewis] Cook, we missed players that give us that energy.

“I think we will recover some of the players but we still do not recover some players with the five yellow cards so we will have to think of other players to give us energy. [Today] has been a bad result but we have to stay together, analyse and we have to use this loss to try to do a reset and think properly about things we need to do better.”

The underlying numbers suggest Bournemouth are unfortunate to be 14th. On that measure of chance quality created and conceded, the side from England’s south coast rank 10th in the league.

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Expect Goals When Bournemouth and Chelsea Butt Heads

Bournemouth will be without five first-teamers for the visit of Chelsea, with Christie, Cook, Ben Gannon-Doak, Tyler Adams and Matai Akinmboni all absent. However, David Brooks and Marcos Senesi are available for selection again. As for Chelsea, Cole Palmer could return to the starting XI, but Moises Caicedo is banned and Levi Colwill and Romeo Lavia are injured.

With Christie, Cook and Adams all unavailable, Bournemouth will have to use a patched-up midfield here. Chelsea should therefore have opportunities to hit their opponents on the counter-attack through the center of the pitch.

Chelsea’s defense will also be tested. Bournemouth pack a punch in attack, with Antoine Semenyo widely regarded as one of the best forwards in the division. Maresca may conclude that attack is the best form of defense at the Vitality Stadium.

Goals are on the cards in this one. Bournemouth’s games this season are averaging 3.21 goals, second only to Manchester City. Both teams have scored in four of their last five league outings too. We reckon there will be at least three strikes when Bournemouth face Chelsea in the Premier League on Saturday.

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How to Watch Bournemouth vs. Chelsea

• Teams: Bournemouth vs. Chelsea

• Location: Vitality Stadium, Bournemouth, England

• Date and Time: Saturday 6th December, 10.00AM ET

• How to Watch: Peacock Premium