Fulham v Chelsea predicted lineups and team news

Liam Williams Published: 1 hour ago

Fulham and Chelsea get their 2026/27 Premier League campaigns underway on Monday night with each having a new manager in the dugout.

The Cottagers begin life under Alvaro Arbeloa following Marco Silva's departure while Chelsea will hope to have landed a long-term manager in Xabi Alonso.

While a Premier League push might be beyond Alonso in his first season, no European football should serve the Blues well, and a return to the UEFA Champions League is the minimum expectation at Stamford Bridge.

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Fulham v Chelsea

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Chelsea's enormous squad will present Alonso with plenty of selection headaches throughout the campaign, even with the departures of Marc Cucurella, Tyrique George, Andrey Santos and Trevoh Chalobah.

One confirmed absentee is Wesley Fofana, who will miss the start of the season through suspension, potentially seeing Reece James shift to the right of a back three alongside Levi Colwill and new signing Maxence Lacroix.

Alonso has plentiful wing-back options and Marco Pallestra should start on the left with Pedro Neto looking like the most likely to start on the right.

Moises Caicedo will start in midfield, and without too many other options, Enzo Fernandez should partner the Ecuadorian despite speculation around his future.

Morgan Rogers and Cole Palmer will start as the 10s behind Joao Pedro.

For the hosts, new signing Gonzalo Garcia is expected to lead the line with Oscar Bobb on the right. Josh King and Cesar Palacios should play in supporting roles with Kevin set to start from the bench.

Joachim Andersen's suspension will likely see Jorge Cuenca and Calvin Bassey partner in the heart of defence.