January 13th, 2010 by Phil Lythell

Chelsea return to Barclays Premier League action this weekend when they welcome Sunderland to Stamford Bridge.

The Blues will be keen to reassert themselves at top of the table after a stuttering end to 2009. Chelsea ended last year with a sketchy 2-1 win over Fulham and will be desperate to  keep that winning feeling alive though they will be hoping for an marked improvement in performance.

Carlo Ancelotti’s men were due to play relegation-threatened Hull last weekend but the match at the KC Stadium – along with the vast majority of fixtures across the country – was postponed due to adverse weather conditions. This opened the door for Arsenal to close the gap on their London neighbours and for Manchester United to take over at the top of the table. Thankfully for Chelsea, Everton and Birmingham held their main title rivals to draws and they maintained their position on top of the Premier League tree.

The postponement had another unforeseen benefit in that it meant that there was one less match in which Chelsea would miss their quartet of players currently serving in the Africa Cup of Nations. While the Blues would have been expected to win the match in any case the prospect of an XI bolstered by Didier Drogba and Michael Essien will be a far more daunting prospect for the Tigers.

Sunderland have experienced a similarly poor run results lately having gone seven league matches without a win since their 1-0 triumph over Arsenal in November. The Black Cats were comprehensively outplayed by Chelsea in the reverse fixture earlier in the season when the Blues ran out 3-1 winners despite Darren Bent giving the home side the lead in that game.

Manager Steve Bruce will have to decide whether he should instruct his team to attack a Chelsea side that is shorn of two of their star players and suffering a rare drop in confidence or whether to pack the midfield to keep the match tight with the possibility of nicking a goal on the counter-attack.

Avoiding defeat will represent a moral victory for Sunderland while nothing less than a win will do for Ancelotti as his team seek to cement their position at the top.

Tickets for Chelsea v Sunderland are still available to compare and buy at tixdaq.com.

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