Confirmed West Brom starting XI vs Chelsea
West Brom have made one change to the starting XI as Conor Gallagher misses out for the Premier League lunchtime clash against Chelsea.
Sam Allardyce decided to stick with many of the same players who lost to Crystal Palace last time out but Gallagher is absent as he cannot play against his parent club.
Confirmed on Twitter prior to kick-off, Albion have brought Semi Ajayi into the starting line-up with Big Sam opting for a back five.
Big Sam certainly knows his preferred starting XI and has found a successful formula for his defence, conceding just two goals in the last five games.
It is attack that could be key against Chelsea however, as Thomas Tuchel’s side have let in two goals in the 14 games he has managed.
And Albion have struggled in that department, scoring twice in the last seven games.
Mbaye Diagne could be key for West Brom as Allardyce told talkSPORT that intends to move the ball forward quickly in order to bypass the Chelsea press.
For Chelsea, Jorginho could be key to their possession style, particularly as N’Golo Kante will be missing [Chelseafc.com].
They will also be hoping Timo Werner recovers from his shocking mid-week miss for Germany as Tuchel confirms he will start, per Sky Sports.
Not many anticipate Albion getting anything from this match and by the end of the day we could find ourselves just one point above Sheffield United.
While three points is unlikely, we hope the team shows the effort we know they’re capable of and give Chelsea a tough game.
Time is running out to get the points we need to stay up and today’s game is the start of a difficult run that sees us visit Leicester and Aston Villa in the coming weeks.
A win would be an unlikely but massive boost – one that would give us a glimmer of hope at achieving the impossible, survival.
In other West Brom news, a Chelsea Super Fan made a big Allardyce claim while gushing over an Albion star.
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