Chelsea take on bottom side Sunderland at the Stadium of Light, a place where we’ve experienced plenty of darkness in recent visits. And now it’s cloudy and rainy as well.
Xabi Alonso has made a couple big calls, picking both Wesley Fofana and Marco Palestra and going with a back-four, as well as opting for all three midfielders (Caicedo passed fit), with just a front-three. That was an anemic setup last time we tried it against Spurs; let’s hope it works better now! Josh Acheampong not in the squad, presumably due to a late injury?
Sunderland starting XI:
Roefs | Meunier, Mukiele, O’Nien, Reinildo, Xhaka (c), Sadiki, Hume, Le Fée, Talbi, Brobbey
Substitutes from: Ellborg, Danso, Methalie, Angulo, Rigg, Isidor, Fofana, Tutierov, Ahoka
Chelsea starting lineup (4-3-3):
Penders | Chavarría, Colwill, Fofana, Palestra | Henderson, Caicedo (c), Lavia | Neto, Rogers, Palmer
Substitutes from: Sharman-Lowe, Anselmino, Gusto, Barco, Nicoll-Jazuli, Quenda, Estêvão, Welbeck, Emegha
Date / Time: Sunday, November 8, 2026, 14.00 GMT; 9am EST; 7:30pm IST
Venue: Stadium of Light, Sunderland
Referee: Jarred Gillett (on pitch), Nick Hopton (VAR)
On TV: Sky Sports Premier League (UK); USA, Telemundo (USA); Star Sports Select HD2 (India); SuperSport MaXimo 1 (NGA); elsewhere
Streaming: Sky Go (UK); Telemundo Deportes En Vivo (USA); JioHotstar (India); DStv Now (NGA)
Be excellent to each other, and party on, dudes!
