Chelsea vs West Ham - LIVE!
Chelsea will look for another win over their London rivals as they host West Ham at Stamford Bridge this afternoon. The Blues should be in a confident mood after their win over Tottenham on Thursday, and victory here would move them within just two points of sixth place in the Premier League.
European football will be the sole focus for Mauricio Pochettino's side in the final four games of the season next season, with Chelsea still in the hunt to achieve that despite their inconsistencies. It's still a long, long list of injuries at the club, but Christopher Nkunku and Levi Colwill could be back in the side today with a much-needed boost.
West Ham drew against Liverpool last weekend, but it is still just one win in their last nine games in all competitions. David Moyes appears to be coming to the end of his time in charge and will be keen to end on a high, with three points here enough to lift the Hammers above Chelsea in the table for the time being. Follow all the action with Standard Sport's LIVE blog, with expert analysis from Nizaar Kinsella and Malik Ouzia on the ground!
Chelsea vs West Ham latest news
-
Kick-off: 2pm BST | Stamford Bridge
-
How to watch: Not on TV in Britain
-
Chelsea team news: Nkunku and Colwill could return
-
West Ham team news: Mavropanos doubtful
-
Standard sports prediction
Lopetegui leads the West Ham race
Julen Lopetegui is now the frontrunner to replace David Moyes at West Ham, with the Spaniard close to a deal.
Moyes is out of contract at the end of the current season and both he and the club insist a decision on his future will only be made after talks after the final game of the season.
However, expectations are high that the Scot will leave the London Stadium this summer and the search for a potential successor has been going on for weeks.
Talks with Lopetegui are going well, although no final agreement in principle has yet been reached and Sporting boss Ruben Amorim remains a real contender for the post.
The story continues
The fact that former Lopetegui is currently out of a job, meaning West Ham do not have to pay a release clause, is considered attractive to co-chairman David Sullivan.
Lille coach Paulo Fonseca and former Bayern Munich boss Hans Flick are also being considered.
How are things...
The end of the Premier League season is fast approaching.
Chelsea are eighth in the table, but if they win here they will move above Manchester United and within two points of Newcastle in sixth.
Erik ten Hag's team will have the chance to respond tomorrow evening when they take on Crystal Palace.
West Ham, ninth in the table, can surpass Chelsea if they win this afternoon, but The Blues still have a match in hand. The Hammers need a lot of favors if they want to secure European football next season.
Pochettino speaks about Gallagher's future
Mauricio Pochettino has insisted the Chelsea board must take action to keep Conor Gallagher at Stamford Bridge.
Gallagher could leave Chelsea this summer as the Blues' owners consider whether or not to sell the England midfielder.
Chelsea fans made their feelings clear about homegrown talent Gallagher before the Blues won 2-0 against rivals Tottenham, unfurling a banner in support of the 24-year-old.
The Shed End Tifo read "Conor Gallagher, Chelsea since birth", in an emphatic appeal to Blues bosses to keep their home favorite in west London.
Asked about Gallagher's wider situation, Pochettino said: "I'm not involved, I don't know anything, I can't tell you.
"I think you can see that I was strong with him all season. He is of course an important player.
"But I'm not involved in the decision, it's the club and Conor. I'm not involved, that's a situation they have to resolve between the club and the player."
West Ham were 'close' to a deal for Palmer
David Moyes has revealed how close he came to signing Cole Palmer last summer and hinted that the failure of Lucas Paqueta's move to Manchester City played a role in West Ham missing out on the England star.
West Ham were in talks to sign Palmer when it became clear he was on course to leave City during last year's window, but ultimately missed out on Chelsea, where the 21-year-old has since excelled, scoring 20 Premier League goals this season. .
Around the same time, City completed an £80 million deal for Paqueta, but backed out when news broke that the FA were investigating the midfielder for possible betting violations.
"[We were] close, close," Moyes said at his press conference on Friday. "You can probably imagine the other part of it, where there was the possibility of someone leaving here that could make that work.
"I was in regular contact with his agent and we were getting along well with it, but in the end it just changed and we couldn't do it."
Standard sports prediction
Chelsea were so impressive on Thursday with limited options, and there are increasing signs that things are finally clicking.
That's been said many times this season, but they should have enough to beat a West Ham side that stumbles towards the end of the season.
Chelsea wins 2-1.The stage has been set!
It's a glorious afternoon in West London...
Nizaar Kinsella at Stamford Bridge
Midfielders Jimi Tauriainen and Leo Castledine were both substitutes in the 2-0 win over Tottenham on Thursday evening. However, they both suffered injuries during Chelsea Under-21's win over Brighton. They will likely be out today, but Christopher Nkunku and Levi Colwill could return to take their places on the bench.West Ham team news
Konstantinos Mavropanos is aiming to be available for West Ham.
Mavropanos has been on the sidelines for the past three games after limping off in last month's damaging defeat to Fulham.
The Greek defender's absence has coincided with an injury to Nayef Aguerd, meaning David Moyes has been left with Kurt Zouma and veteran Angelo Ogbonna as his only two fit centre-backs in recent weeks.
Aguerd suffered an ankle injury in the second leg of the Europa League quarter-final defeat to Bayer Leverkusen and Moyes confirmed the Moroccan will not be fit for Chelsea but was more positive about Mavropanos' chances.
"Dinos is making some progress, Aguerd is not available," said the Scot.
Predicted West Ham XI: areola; Coufal, Mavropanos, Zouma, Emerson; Soucek, Alvarez; Bowen, Paqueta, Kudus; Antonio
Chelsea team news
Christopher Nkunku and Levi Colwill are in contention to give Chelsea a much-needed double boost.
Nkunku, 26, has made just two appearances for Chelsea since joining last summer after enduring an injury-plagued debut season in the Premier League. Colwill is also expected back from a toe injury.
Their return will ease the Blues' massive injury list, which still numbers an alarming 12 players.
Reece James, Thiago Silva, Axel Disasi, Malo Gusto, Enzo Fernandez, Lesley Ugochukwu, Ben Chilwell, Romeo Lavia, Robert Sanchez and Wesley Fofana will all be out injured.
Chelsea's only available midfield duo, Moises Caicedo and Conor Gallagher, will continue as a double pivot. They will start behind an attacking front four of Noni Madueke, Cole Palmer, Mykhailo Mudryk and Nicolas Jackson.
Predicted Chelsea XI (4-2-3-1): Petrovic; Gilchrist, Chalobah, Badiashile, Cucurella; Caicedo, Gallagher; Madueke, Palmer, Mudryk; Jackson
Why isn't Chelsea vs West Ham on TV?
TV channel and live stream: The match will not be broadcast in Britain as it was originally scheduled for the 3pm kick-off on Saturday, which would have taken place during the TV blackout imposed in English football.
As a result of the postponement, the film cannot be shown live in Britain.
Highlights: However, fans can watch highlights for free whenever Match of the day 2 airs at 10:30pm BST BBC One on Sunday.
LIVE coverage: Follow all the action LIVE with us, with expert analysis from Nizaar Kinsella and Malik Ouzia on the ground.
Good morning!
Hello and welcome to Standard Sport's LIVE coverage of Chelsea vs West Ham!
Another London derby for the Blues, just a few days after proving too good for Tottenham. West Ham were the visitors this afternoon, with both teams needing points in the race for European football.
We've got the latest updates, build-up and team news ahead of kick-off, which takes place at 2pm BST from Stamford Bridge.