The last international break of 2025 is over, and it’s now uninterrupted football for the next four months (not counting the Africa Cup of Nations, which doesn’t affect us this time around). Winter is here,
and so is the winter grind. You can’t win any actual trophies just yet, but you can certainly lose out on them.
Just past the quarter mark of the season, Chelsea begin this phase in third place, a couple points behind an (under the radar?) Manchester City and six points behind high-flying Arsenal (before their inevitable collapse?). But only three points separate us from the rest of the top half of the table, so our position is hardly secure. If the inconsistencies and disappointments that have plagued us so far continue, this will be a close fight for the top-four or -five to the end.
One great way to help our chances of achieving our base aims is to take care of business against teams in the bottom half of the table. Burnley, who raised a lot of eyebrows with their defensive excellence in the second division last year, have conceded the second most goals in the top flight so far. Let’s fill our cups, and gets the winds of winter blowing in the right direction.
Date / Time: Saturday, November 22, 12.30 GMT; 7:30am EST; 6pm IST
Venue: Turf Moor, Burnley, England
Referee: Peter Bankes (on pitch); Rob Jones (VAR)
Forecast: Cold, breezy, rainy
On TV: TNT Sports 1 (UK); USA, Universo (USA); Star Sports Select HD1 (India); SuperSport Premier League (NGA); elsewhere
Streaming: discovery+ (UK); NBC Sports Live, Telemundo Deportes En Vivo (USA); Disney+ Hotstar (India); DStv Now (NGA)
Burnley team news: Burnley sit just above the relegation zone as things stand, and only thanks to goal difference, despite having conceded 22 goals in 11 games already — already six (6!) more than they conceded all last season (16 in 46 games), which was a new record for English football. (Chelsea hold the Premier League record with 15 conceded in 38 games in 2004-05; Liverpool hold the top flight record with 16 conceded in 42 games in 1978-79.)
Their struggles on the defensive end are a bit of a surprise, as the only player of note to leave in the summer was goalkeeper James Trafford, and he was replaced by a proven player in Newcastle’s Martin Dúbravka (on loan). They also signed Bashir Humphreys for good after his season on loan from Chelsea, adding midfielder Lesley Ugochukwu and striker Armando Broja from the Blues later as well. Manager Scott Parker, another former Blue, had struggled in his previous stints in the Premier League however (with Fulham and Bournemouth), and he’s having a similarly rough time of it currently.
Broja’s facing a late fitness test for this one, along with left back Quilindschy Hartman, who’s been dealing with an illness.
Chelsea team news: Chelsea are also dealing with a couple fitness doubts, as Benoît Badiashile only just returned to training while Moisés Caicedo only got back from international duty on Thursday. But Enzo Fernández and Pedro Neto, who withdrew from their respective national teams due to injuries, are 100 per cent (or as 100 per cent as they can be), having rested and recovered over the past fortnight instead. Jamie Gittens, who had a bit of an injury scare with England U21, is also good to go.
Unfortunately, Cole Palmer has fractured the little toe on his left foot somehow while being at home recovering from his groin injury, so he’ll be out for at least another week, but probably more. Bones heal well, but never quickly. Levi Colwill, Roméo Lavia, and Dário Essugo remain out long-term.
Chelsea have two massive games looming later this week, at home against Barcelona on Tuesday and then Arsenal away on Sunday, but we mustn’t overlook this potentially tricky test either.
Previously: We haven’t lost to Burnley since 2008, when they beat us on penalties in a League Cup fourth round match — part of the beginning of the end for one Luiz Felipe Scolari, for those who remember those days. We did draw our last match against them, towards the end of 2023-24, conceding a later equalizer to Dara O’Shea. Our last visit to Turf Moor was a bit more fun however, overcoming an early goal from the home side to win easily, 4-1.
