Middlesbrough vs. Chelsea: Team News, Preview, Live Stream and TV Info

In-form Chelsea will return to action following the international break on Sunday, as the Blues visit Middlesbrough on Matchday 12 of the 2016-17 Premier League season.

Manager Antonio Conte and his troops won five straight Premier League matches heading into the international break, rising up the standings in the process. The Blues will hope to keep that momentum going against Boro, with tough clashes against Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester City on the horizon.

Here's everything you need to know about Sunday's match.

Time: 4 p.m. GMT/11 a.m. ET

Venue: Riverside Stadium, Middlesbrough

TV Info: Sky Sports 1 (U.S.), NBC Sports Live (US)

Live Stream: Sky Go, NBC Live Extra

Team News

Chelsea fans suffered a scare when Eden Hazard picked up an apparent knock in Belgium's 8-1 demolition of Estonia last week, but the star winger should be good to go on Sunday. Per the London Evening Standard, Hazard has already confirmed he's fit, but the same doesn't hold true for Diego Costa, who injured his groin on international duty and is a doubt as a result.

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Kurt Zouma should be ready for a spot on the bench, per the report, while it's unclear whether Ruben Loftus-Cheek will be fit in time. Middlesbrough have no real injury concerns entering the contest.

Predicted Middlesbrough XI: Victor Valdes, Antonio Barragan, Calum Chambers, Ben Gibson, George Friend, Adam Forshaw, Adam Clayton, Adama Traore, Gaston Ramirez, Stuart Downing, Alvaro Negredo

Predicted Chelsea XI: Thibaut Courtois, Cesar Azpilicueta, David Luiz, Gary Cahill, Victor Moses, N'Golo Kante, Nemanja Matic, Marcos Alonso, Pedro, Michy Batshuayi, Eden Hazard

Preview

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The big question heading into Sunday's match is whether Costa will play. The Spain international has been in stunning form to start the season, combining well with Hazard and scoring at a fantastic rate.

He's had one or two injury concerns in the past, however, which means Conte has to be careful managing him after he picked up a knock with Spain.

On top of that, the 28-year-old is also just one booking away from a suspension, and MailOnline's Oliver Todd thought he should have got that out of the way before the international break:

A booking against lowly Boro would mean Costa would miss out on the derby against Spurs―combined with his injury worries, Conte would be wise to leave the striker on the bench this time around.

Middlesbrough sit just one point ahead of Hull City and the relegation zone, but they've so far proved a resilient bunch. With five draws and just 12 goals conceded, Boro rank among the top defensive units near the bottom of the standings, and both Arsenal and Spurs struggled breaking the side down earlier this season.

As shared by the club's official Twitter account, players such as Ben Gibson seem to love it when Boro take on one of the Premier League giants, and fans and pundits alike think they have no chance:

The Riverside Stadium is not an easy place to play for any of the Premier League's top clubs, and while few teams have been in better form of late than Chelsea, the international break tends to shake things up a bit.

Dropping Costa with an eye on the upcoming fixtures and his knock would be risky, but it's a risk Conte has to take and one that could influence the outcome of this match greatly.

Final prediction: Middlesbrough 0-1 Chelsea