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Diego Costa Chelsea
Diego Costa Getty Images

Chelsea host Southampton at the Stamford Bridge on Sunday, as the Blues look to take an eight point lead over their nearest rivals Manchester City.

Where to watch live

Kick-off is set for 1:30pm GMT. Live coverage of the game will be available on Sky Sports 1 and Sky Sports 1 HD.

Overview

Jose Mourinho has seen better weeks go by, but what transpired for his team over the past 96 hours has been disappointing for him. The Blues need to bounce back from their Champions League defeat at the hands of Paris Saint-Germain and seal the league title, with 11 games remaining in the league.

Chelsea were found wanting against the French club, even after they were handed a major boost after the sending off of Zlatan Ibrahimovic which meant that the Parisians were forced to play with 10 men for more than half the game.

The Blues looked lethargic in spite of having had the weekend off and paid the price for their demeanour after David Luiz cannoned home the equaliser.

Chelsea took the lead yet again through a contentious penalty decision awarded for handball inside the PSG penalty box by Thiago Silva. Eden Hazard scored from the spot and had all but sealed Chelsea's entry into the quarter finals, before Silva's thumping equaliser that came from a corner, saw the Premier League club crash out on away goals.

Anything less than a win against Southampton will put massive pressure on Mourinho and can potentially undermine their campaign in the league.

Meanwhile, Ronald Koeman can sense an opportunity for Southampton at the bridge, especially with the Chelsea players desperate to make amends for their poor performance in the midweek.

The Saints have petered out of the top-four battle after starting brilliantly this season and are looking poised to challenge for a Europa league spot, currently four points behind Manchester United.

A win here will reignite their campaign and keep the pressure on the teams around them, who are set to player later in the day.

What managers say

Jose Mourinho: "My happiness first of all is when I compare myself with the others, I see just a few that are with me in terms of success and the others I see a huge difference, a huge distance. I have lots of respect for all of them, but in the Premier League, who is European champion? Me and [Manchester United boss Louis] van Gaal. In the Premier League how many won the Premier League twice or more than twice? [Arsenal boss Arsene] Wenger and myself. How many won every competition in this country? Community Shield, Capital Cup, Carling Cup, FA Cup, Premier League? How many? You go to Europe, how many won seven league titles? How many won two Champions Leagues? Ancelotti won three. Van Gaal, two. And Pep [Guardiola, the Bayern Munich boss], two. I'm not content with that, but you are too much worried about myself."

Ronald Koeman: "I know Jose very well. He is a good friend and a great coach and a very successful manager. Our time together at Barcelona was nice and I am looking forward to meeting him again and playing Chelsea. Jose was always very ambitious as a coach and had good coaches around him. They will do everything to beat us. They need a win after the disappointing result but the players and the manager have the experience to cope with that."

Betting odds (888Sport.com)

  • Chelsea win: 3/5
  • Draw: 29/10
  • Southampton win: 21/4

Team news

Chelsea

Possible XI: Courtois; Ivanovic, Cahill, Terry, Filipe Luis; Ramires, Matic; Cuadrado, Oscar, Hazard; Diego Costa.

Southampton

Possible XI: Forster; Clyne, Fonte, Alderweireld, Bertrand; Wanyama, Schneiderlin, Djuricic, Elia, Mane; Pelle.

Chelsea FC