Kealan Hughes

Sat 3 April 2021 9:30, UK

This is part of a regular series from our panel of Super Fans on upcoming West Brom games. Ahead of our trip to Stamford Bridge we spoke to Chelsea Super Fan Matthew Long, who can be found on Twitter @MatthewLong_

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West Brom travel to Stamford Bridge at lunchtime to take on a Chelsea side that have not lost a league game under Thomas Tuchel.

To make matters worse, Chelsea have conceded just two goals in ten league matches under the German boss.

Albion put three past the Blues earlier in the season before throwing away a three-goal lead in a 3-3 draw.

Under Sam Allardyce we have been a lot less gung-ho however, and have conceded just two goals in five games ourselves.

It could be a tight affair, therefore, although Chelsea Super Fan Matthew Long is confident his team will win all three points.

What’s the latest Chelsea team news? Any injuries of note?

“The team is almost back to full-strength with just N’Golo Kante out injured for the game.

“Kante has been in great form as of late, although the match might suit Jorginho better as I expect us to have the majority of possession.

“Thiago Silva and Tammy Abraham have returned to training, and could feature, Thomas Tuchel has confirmed Timo Werner will start.”

Where can Chelsea hurt West Brom?

“Our width will be key again, as a lot of our attacks revolve around over-lapping runs from our wing-backs and getting crosses into the box.

“I think a huge strength of ours lately has been our ability to keep the ball and probe teams.

“In Mason Mount and Mateo Kovacic we have great ball carriers who can change the tempo of a game and fashion an opening.

“The pace of Werner, Callum Hudson-Odoi and Kai Havertz will also be a factor in opening up the West Brom defence.”

Where do you see West Brom’s biggest strengths and weaknesses?

“I see attacking set-pieces as being one of West Brom’s major strengths and I expect Big Sam’s men to play for them.

“Having said that, in the reverse fixture, the Baggies looked quick on the counter and Matheus Pereira was a threat.

“The main weaknesses I see is West Brom’s defence and the number of chances they concede per game.

“They have the worst defence in the league, conceding 57, and we must look to exploit their backline.”

What have you made of Conor Gallagher’s progress with us, can you see him having a first-team role at Chelsea next season?

“I think Gallagher has been unreal at times for West Brom this season and I’ve been impressed by the progress he has made.

“His tireless work effort and ability to continuously go from box-to-box has been great to see.

“I must admit, I’m not sure I can see him being a regular starter for us just yet, given our change in formation and the form of the players that are currently ahead of him.

“Personally, another Premier League loan next season would probably work best for him.”

What’s your score prediction for the game and why?

“I’m going for 2-0 to Chelsea. Our defence has been incredibly stubborn as of late.

“We rarely concede many chances, let alone any goals, and I can’t see West Brom troubling us too much.

“We haven’t been as potent in front of goal as Tuchel would like us to be, and despite creating chances, we don’t usually put them away.

“I can see West Brom frustrating us but we should be able to grab a couple of goals in the second half.”

Do you think Big Sam would have had a better shot at keeping Albion up if he arrived sooner? Would you back him to get us back up next year?

“Definitely, I think had Big Sam been in charge from the start of the season things may have gone differently.

“Having said that, a lack of a pre-season last summer has not helped any of the teams, especially the clubs that got promoted.

“The quality of the teams in the Premier League is getting stronger year-on-year, and it was always going to be a struggle for West Brom to stay up.

“I can see Allardyce bringing you back up next year, you definitely have some quality players and it is just a case of making sure you keep a hold of them.”

Pundits and fans alike seem to think three points is more or less guaranteed for Chelsea – Mark Lawrenson and Paul Merson both back a home win.

Allardyce knows the cards are stacked against him but he could use that to our favour.

All the pressure will be on the home side and as Matthew says, Albion can frustrate our opponents by limiting space and disrupting their flow.

As long as we keep things tight at the back, particularly early on, then Chelsea will not get things their own way and we may get a surprise result.

We have been strong defensively in recent weeks, too, and after Werner’s miss for Germany in mid-week he will likely be low on confidence.

In other West Brom news, Darren Bent claims Albion lack the pulling power to attract a former Premier League boss linked to Celtic.

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