Mohamed Salah bids to bring Manchester United down to earth, Spurs seek an attacking spark and a high-stakes derby
It is surely not a coincidence that Benoît Badiashile’s only disappointing performance since his move to Chelsea came when Thiago Silva was rested for last month’s defeat to Southampton. Badiashile is quick and strong, but he is still only 21 and has much to learn. It is no surprise that the former Monaco defender has been better next to Silva. Unfortunately for Chelsea though, Silva cannot play every game. They had to rest the 38-year-old against Southampton and struggled after he went off with a knee injury against Spurs. Chelsea fear that Silva will be out for six weeks and Graham Potter, who is under growing pressure amid a dreadful run of form, could be short of defensive leaders when Leeds visit Stamford Bridge. Wesley Fofana is only three months older than Badiashile and has had injury problems, while Trevoh Chalobah is out of favour and the 31-year-old Kalidou Koulibaly has been poor since joining last summer. Jacob Steinberg
Chelsea v Leeds, Saturday 3pm (all times GMT)
Liverpool v Manchester United (Sunday, 4.30pm)
Manchester City v Newcastle, Saturday 12.30pm
Arsenal v Bournemouth, Saturday 3pm
Continue reading...