Chelsea and Wolverhampton Wanderers will be eager to return to winning ways when they meet at Stamford Bridge on Saturday.

The dreaded international break is nearly here, but before that, Premier League action will resume with Gameweek 11 of the 2025/26 season. The latest round of fixtures will kick off on Saturday with the match between Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester United in North London and end with Chelsea vs Wolverhampton Wanderers at Stamford Bridge.

Chelsea would have hoped to make significant progress in the 2025/26 season after winning the FIFA Club World Cup this past summer. However, the Blues have been inconsistent this term, although they have regained some form by embarking on a run of only one defeat in their last eight games (W6 D1). But Enzo Maresca will have been disappointed by the 2-2 draw with Qarabag FK in the UEFA Champions League earlier this week.

On the other hand, Wolverhampton Wanderers are staring at the prospect of facing relegation from the Premier League after failing to win their first ten game this term. The visitors are at the bottom of the table, and after managing only two points in ten outings, Vitor Pereira has lost his job. The Black Country outfit will not go deep into the EFL Cup either after Chelsea beat them 4-3 in the fourth round.

The corresponding fixture last season saw Chelsea clinch a 3-1 win, with Matt Doherty scoring the consolation goal for Wolverhampton Wanderers. The Hard Tackle looks closer at the encounter ahead of the latest meeting between the two sides.

Team News & Tactics

Chelsea

Enzo Maresca has received a mixed bag of updates on the team news front ahead of his side’s latest fixture. The Chelsea manager will be bereft of the services of half a dozen first-team players vs Wolverhampton Wanderers on Saturday.

Romeo Lavia is the latest absentee after picking up a hamstring injury earlier this week in the UEFA Champions League clash with Qarabag FK. The Belgian international has joined Levi Colwill (ACL), Benoit Badiashile (muscle), Dario Essugo (thigh), and Cole Palmer (groin) in the treatment room.

Mykhailo Mudryk continues to serve a suspension after failing a doping test several months ago. However, there is some good news, as former Wolverhampton Wanderers winger Pedro Neto should have recovered from a knock to feature on Saturday.

Robert Sanchez is an automatic pick between the sticks, with Chelsea lining up in a 4-2-3-1 formation in front of him vs Wolverhampton Wanderers on Saturday. The backline will feature Malo Gusto, Wesley Fofana, Trevoh Chalobah, and Marc Cucurella.

As for the midfield unit, there is no looking past Moises Caicedo and Enzo Fernandez in the double pivot. Joao Pedro will likely reprise the no. 10 role, with Estevao Willian and Alejandro Garnacho being the two wide attackers. Finally, Liam Delap will lead the line for Chelsea against Wolverhampton Wanderers on Saturday.

Proable Lineup (4-2-3-1): Sanchez; Gusto, Fofana, Chalobah, Cucurella; Caicedo, Enzo Fernandez; Estevao, Joao Pedro, Garnacho; Delap

Wolverhampton Wanderers

Like their counterpart in the Chelsea dugout, James Collins and Richard Walker, who will likely take caretaker charge of Wolverhampton Wanderers, have new issues to worry about ahead of the trip to Stamford Bridge. The visitors will be without four first-team players on Saturday.

Emmanuel Agbadou is the latest absentee after being sent off against Fulham last weekend. Meanwhile, Matt Doherty (knee), Rodrigo Gomes (groin), and Leon Chiwome (knee) are in the treatment room for the away side.

Sam Johnstone will likely take his spot between the sticks, with Wolverhampton Wanderers lining up in a 3-4-2-1 formation in front of him vs Chelsea on Saturday. The central defensive unit will feature Toti Gomes, Ladislav Krejci, and Santiago Bueno. Meanwhile, Jackson Tchatchoua and Hugo Bueno will start as the two wing-backs.

The wide duo will primarily protect the centre-backs but also provide width during counter-attacking moves. As for the midfield unit, there is no looking past Andre Trindade and Joao Gomes in the middle of the park. Finally, Jorgen Strand Larsen will spearhead the Wolverhampton Wanderers attack against Chelsea, with Marshall Munetsi and Jean Ricner Bellegarde completing the numbers in the offensive third.

Probable Lineup (3-4-2-1): Johnstone; Toti Gomes, Krejci, Santiago Bueno; Tchatchoua, Andre, Joao Gomes, Hugo Bueno; Munetsi, Bellegarde; Strand Larsen

Key Stats

• After losing three consecutive Premier League games vs Wolverhampton Wanderers between April 2023 and February 2024, Chelsea won both meetings last season by an aggregate score of 9-3. Meanwhile, Wolves have won only one of their 11 Premier League away matches against Chelsea (D3 L7), picking up a 4-2 victory in February 2024.
• Wolverhampton Wanderers have picked up only two points in ten Premier League games this season (D2 L8). Every single Premier League side with two or fewer points at this stage has been relegated: Manchester City in 1995/96 (2), Sunderland in 2016/17 (2), Sheffield United in 2020/21 (1) and 2023/24 (1), and Norwich City in 2021/22 (2).
• Chelsea have spent only 14.4 per cent of their Premier League matches this season in a losing game state, with only Crystal Palace (14.2 per cent) spending a lower portion of their games facing defeat. By contrast, Wolverhampton Wanderers have spent 59.1 per cent of their games losing, the most of any team.
• Wolverhampton Wanderers have gone 14 Premier League games without a victory (D3 L11), having won six successive matches before this run. Only once have they gone 15 top-flight matches without a victory, having not been relegated between that run, doing so between January and August 1970 (16).
• Chelsea have conceded 6.1 xG from set pieces (excluding pens) in the Premier League this season, the most of any side. Meanwhile, they have faced just 62 shots in open play, with only Arsenal (53) conceding fewer in the 2025/26 campaign.

Player to Watch

Joao Pedro

Embed from Getty Images

While Alejandro Garnacho, Jorgen Strand Larsen, and Joao Gomes were viable candidates for this section, we have picked Joao Pedro as the Player to Watch for Saturday’s Premier League clash between Chelsea and Wolverhampton Wanderers at Stamford Bridge.

The Brazilian international has been involved in six goals in his last nine Premier League outings (3 goals, 3 assists) for Chelsea. Joao Pedro’s next game will be his 100th in the competition, thus becoming the 31st Brazilian to hit that total. With the former Brighton & Hove Albion star not scoring as much as he would have liked, a game-changing display against Wolverhampton Wanderers will be on his wishlist.

Prediction

Chelsea 3-1 Wolverhampton Wanderers

Saturday’s match will be Chelsea’s opportunity to scale the Premier League table, as a few teams above them in the standings face each other. However, Wolverhampton Wanderers have the chance of experiencing a bounce after parting ways with Vitor Pereira this past week.

However, while the away side will take the game to Chelsea, they will not have enough quality to get anything from the game. Additionally, Joao Pedro will likely deliver the goods in the final third, with Liam Delap also making his mark. The Hard Tackle predicts a 3-1 win for Enzo Maresca and his charges.