Match Today: Chelsea vs Southampton 18-02-2023 English Premier League

After returning from Champions League action midweek, Chelsea have turned their attention to the Premier League as they host relegation-threatened Southampton on Saturday.

Chelsea sit in 10th place with 31 points while Southampton sit bottom with 15 points. The hosts have managed just one win in 2023 across all competitions. In their most recent game, they suffered a 1-0 away defeat against Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League to extend their run. Winless to four games.

In that stretch, they have scored just one goal. The Blues have not scored more than one in a game this year.

Defensively though they are solid and have only conceded one goal in their last four league games. Against Southampton, they will face a side that have struggled in attack and defence, giving them the belief that they can Long awaited win.

Southampton beat fellow relegation favorites Everton last month but failed to build on that important win, and have now lost three on the trot. That has resulted in Nathan Jones losing his job as manager, the club's second sack of the season.

Reports suggest that talks to take over as manager have broken down with Jesse Marsh, recently sacked by Leeds United, meaning the Saints will have this clash with Chelsea without a permanent man in charge. From the sidelines, a win on Saturday combined with positive results elsewhere would move them to a safe spot.

Chelsea's last five matches have ended with less than a goal. Southampton have lost nine of their last 10 league matches. Southampton have scored more than one goal in just one of their last five matches.

Chelsea have failed to score in three of their last five home league matches. Chelsea have scored three goals and kept three clean sheets in their last five league matches. Despite being so different from each other in the league standings, both Chelsea and Southampton have been struggling. For consistency all season long.

Chelsea are the favorites here and after losing to Southampton earlier in the season, will hope to avoid a repeat. Both sides have struggled in attack, while Southampton have struggled in defence.