Chelsea managed to salvage a 2-2 draw against West Ham United before the international break and although it is looking very difficult, the Blues still stand an outside chance of finishing in one of the European positions this season.
In order to do so though, Chelsea will probably have to win all of their final eight matches of the season and such a task is certainly an ambitious one for the Premier League champions who have been very inconsistent this season.
Up next for Chelsea is a clash against doomed Aston Villa at Villa Park on Saturday and the match will be viewed as a must win by manager Guus Hiddink.
Goalkeeper
Thibaut Courtois has been speaking very negatively regarding Chelsea over the international break and the fans seem to be irked with the Belgian international.
Nonetheless, Courtois remains the undisputed number one choice between the sticks for Chelsea and he most certainly cannot afford to make mistakes in the encounter against Aston Villa this weekend.
Defence
With the exception of Kurt Zouma, Hiddink will be able to more or less select from his strongest pool of defenders and one should expect the likes of John Terry, Gary Cahill, Cesar Azpilicueta and Branislav Ivanovic to be starting on the day.
Midfield
In midfield, the duo of John Obi Mikel and Cesc Fabregas is the most likely combination but the likes of Ruben Loftus-Cheek and Nemanja Matic will be pushing for a start as well.
Eden Hazard has been ruled out due to injury which means that Pedro should continue in the wings while Willian will be deployed on the opposite flank.
Oscar looks set to be starting in the hole behind the striker but Willian could also be deployed in the role, with Kenedy being used in the wide positions.
Attack
Diego Costa has got himself suspended once again but Hiddink does have a host of options to choose from to replace the Spaniard.
Loic Remy looks the most natural replacement for Costa but Bertrand Traore and Alexandre Pato will be hopeful of featuring as well.
(4-2-3-1)
