London: Jose Mourinho’s Chelsea side will attempt to apply early pressure on their main Premier League rivals when they face a newly-promoted side for the second time inside a week with the visit of Leicester City to Stamford Bridge on Saturday.
Mourinho’s team started their campaign with a comfortable 3-1 victory at Burnley that included a first competitive goal for recent signing Diego Costa following the striker’s £32 million (Dh195 million) move from Atletico Madrid.
And it would constitute a major surprise if they failed to take maximum points against Nigel Pearson’s City side.
Chelsea recovered from the unexpected shock of falling behind to Burnley before moving impressively through the gears to effectively kill off the game before half-time.
The performances of Costa and Cesc Fabregas, another major close-season signing, offered promising signs that Mourinho’s efforts to strengthen his side’s attacking options have been successful.
But Andre Schuerrle, fresh from his success with Germany at the World Cup in Brazil and the scorer of Chelsea’s second goal at Turf Moor, insists there is more to come from himself and the rest of the team.
“I think it was a good start for me, but of course we can be better. And when I am 100 per cent fit, there will be more,” Schuerrle said.
“So there’s a lot of work for me, but I’m feeling good. I’m enjoying my game, I’m enjoying being on the pitch.
“I think the whole team played well at Burnley. We had a lot of control, passes, good combinations. It was a lot of fun on the pitch.”
Thibaut Courtois will again start in goal having been selected ahead of long term number one Petr Cech at Burnley, a decision that has raised doubts about Cech’s long-term future at Chelsea.
Mourinho must decide whether to hand a debut to newly arrived left-back Filipe Luis after starting with Cesar Azpilicueta in the opening game.
Cambiasso uncertainty
Meanwhile Leicester manager Nigel Pearson has admitted he has become frustrated by his attempts to land former Inter Milan and Argentina midfielder Esteban Cambiasso.
The Premier League newcomers have been trying to close a deal for the 33-year-old for a number of weeks but it has proved difficult to complete.
“We have not made too much progress but I’m still hopeful something could be done,” said Pearson.
“It is complicated because representatives keep coming out of the woodwork.
“It’s fair to say we can do with one or two more to make the squad stronger in depth. But that’s not to say I’m not pleased with our players already.
“On Cambiasso it may not be football issues. It is more complicated than I’m prepared to discuss. I’m hopeful something can be done but there are a lot of variables I’m not in control of.”
Pearson has problems for this weekend with regular midfielders Danny Drinkwater (hamstring) and Matty James (shin) ruled out but striker Jamie Vardy and winger Marc Albrighton should be available.
“Jamie Vardy and Marc Albrighton have been training so there is a possibility of them being involved which is positive for us,” added Pearson, whose side started the season with a 2-2 draw at home to Everton.
“We’re OK in terms of availability. It is probably a week too early for both Danny Drinkwater and Matty James.”
Meanwhile, Santi Cazorla wants to return to his scoring consistency of two seasons ago and strengthen Arsenal’s challenge for honours this season.
The Spain midfielder struck seven goals last season and will hope to open his Premier League account this term when Arsene Wenger’s side face Everton at Goodison Park on Saturday.
His goal return in the 2013/14 campaign was down on the 12 goals he scored during his first season at the club and, while Cazorla missed out in the narrow opening day win over Crystal Palace, he provided a reminder of his threat with Arsenal’s first goal in the Community Shield win over Manchester City.
“Kicking off a new season in that fashion is always nice: winning a title and also helping by scoring a goal,” Cazorla said. “That keeps your morale high. As I always say, my target is helping the team with goals.
“I hope to equal or beat my goalscoring tally from last season. That’s something every player wants to achieve.”
He added: “Hopefully, I’ll help the team with many goals because that would be a signal that I can be useful.
“My first season here was very good. I managed to beat my scoring record — which had been nine with Malaga — with 12 goals.
“Last season I wasn’t so consistent because I struggled with ankle problems after an injury with Spain. For this reason I lacked consistency,” Cazorla explained.
“But in the end we managed to win a title after so many years and hopefully this year I’ll be able to give 100 per cent physically and mentally in order to lift more trophies.”
Mikel Arteta will miss out on the chance to face his former club after injuring his ankle during the goalless draw at Besiktas in this week’s Champions League qualifier.
Wenger, the Gunners manager, must decide whether to restore Per Mertesacker to central defence or continue with 19-year-old Calum Chambers in the role.
Mertesacker, along with Mesut Ozil and Lukas Podolski, was given extended leave after helping Germany to win the World Cup.
But Chambers has impressed in an unfamiliar role following his arrival from Southampton.
Everton collected four points from their two Premier League matches against the Gunners last season but finished seven points behind Arsenal in the table.
Blues manager Roberto Martinez feels FA Cup-holders Arsenal will be a much better side this season and is predicting an exciting contest at Goodison Park.
“I think this Arsenal side are better than they were last season with the additions they have made,” Martinez said. “But they’re very similar to us with the philosophy that they have.
“The way Arsenal play has earned a real sense of admiration from people in world football. At Goodison, we really enjoy our football and we can’t wait to get our season started at home from that perspective,” the Spaniard added.
“I think both teams are going to fight really hard to control the game and get on the ball. The difference is how good you can be in the final third.”
Everton will have Republic of Ireland duo Seamus Coleman and Darron Gibson available for the match.
Right-back Coleman suffered a hamstring problem in pre-season but came off the bench during last week’s 2-2 draw at newly-promoted Leicester, while Gibson is now fit again after suffering a serious knee injury in October.
However, Ross Barkley, Bryan Oviedo and Arouna Kone remain long-term absentees.
