Chelsea 2017-18 Premier League fixtures
The 2017-18 Premier League fixture list is announced Wednesday, June 14. Who will Chelsea face as they try to defend their title?
Chelsea were excellent in 2016-17, bouncing back from a mid-table finish the year before to win the Premier League with a record number of wins. The season wasn’t without its disappointments — most notably a lacklustre, losing effort against Arsenal in the FA Cup final — but overall it was an excellent year for the Stamford Bridge club.
Antonio Conte’s side had a so-so start to the season, before a formation switch spurred them onto a 13-match winning run. That proved to be the difference in the title race, as they held off second-place Tottenham to win the league by seven points.
The champions will face a tougher task in 2017-18, however, as their immediate rivals are all set to improve. Manchester United, Manchester City and Liverpool are all expected to spend big this summer, while Tottenham will once again be a threat.
To make things ever more complicated, the Blues will return to the Champions League after a year away. European soccer will of course be welcome back at Stamford Bridge, but Conte is unlikely to be able to rely on the small core of players he used last season.
Diego Costa has been linked with a move away from Chelsea — though Romelu Lukaku seems like a ready-made replacement — while Real Madrid’s interest in Eden Hazard isn’t going anywhere soon. As well as a replacement for Costa, Conte could be on the lookout for another center-back, a wing-back and possibly a midfield partner for last season’s PFA Player of the Year, N’Golo Kante.
Next: Ranking every Premier League season
However, if the Blues can keep hold of their key players, and add one or two more this summer, they will once again be among the favorites to lift the Premier League title.
Chelsea’s full fixture list is as follows:
https://twitter.com/BreatheChels/status/874910368124030977
The standout match among the Blues’ early games is the trip to face Tottenham at Wembley on Aug. 19, while a home game against Liverpool on the penultimate weekend of the season could also have big implications on the title race.