Chelsea Schedule 2015-16: Premier League Fixtures Released
Chelsea’s defence of their Premier League title will begin with a clash against Swansea City on August 8, with the Blues bidding to be crowned kings of English football for the sixth time in the club’s history.
Here’s a look at the full list of fixtures for Jose Mourinho’s men in the 2015-16 season, per the official Premier League website:
| August 8 | Swansea City | Home |
| August 15 | Manchester City | Away |
| August 22 | West Brom | Away |
| August 29 | Crystal Palace | Home |
| September 12 | Everton | Away |
| September 19 | Arsenal | Home |
| September 26 | Newcastle United | Away |
| October 3 | Southampton | Home |
| October 17 | Aston Villa | Home |
| October 24 | West Ham United | Away |
| October 31 | Liverpool | Home |
| November 7 | Stoke City | Away |
| November 21 | Norwich City | Home |
| November 28 | Tottenham Hotspur | Away |
| December 5 | Bournemouth | Home |
| December 12 | Leicester City | Away |
| December 19 | Sunderland | Home |
| December 26 | Watford | Home |
| December 28 | Manchester United | Away |
| January 2 | Crystal Palace | Away |
| January 13 | West Brom* | Home |
| January 16 | Everton | Home |
| January 23 | Arsenal | Away |
| February 2 | Watford* | Away |
| February 6 | Manchester United | Home |
| February 13 | Newcastle United | Home |
| February 27 | Southampton | Away |
| March 1 | Norwich City* | Away |
| March 5 | Stoke City | Home |
| March 12 | Liverpool | Away |
| March 19 | West Ham United | Home |
| April 2 | Aston Villa | Away |
| April 9 | Swansea City | Away |
| April 16 | Manchester City | Home |
| April 23 | Bournemouth | Away |
| April 30 | Tottenham Hotspur | Home |
| May 7 | Sunderland | Away |
| May 15 | Leicester City | Home |
TOP NEWS
Madrid Fines Players $590K 😲
'Mbappé Out' Petition Gaining Steam 😳
Star-Studded World Cup Ad 🤩
Fixtures marked with an asterisk (*) indicate evening kick-offs. Fixtures will be subject to change.
It’s going to be a tough start for the champions, who will be hoping to begin the campaign with the same swagger as last season. While Mourinho’s men were functional rather than fluid in the final embers of their title win, the football they played in August and September was mesmeric.
Their starting credentials are likely to be tested in earnest for the first time when they meet 2013-14 champions Manchester City in the second week of the competition on August 15.
The first clash against London rivals Arsenal will be at Stamford Bridge on September 19, but the first meeting against Manchester United won't be until December 28 at Old Trafford.
In fact, both of Chelsea's clashes with the Red Devils occur in a space of just over five weeks, with Mourinho's side playing host to Louis van Gaal & Co. on February 6, 2016.
As OptaJoe attests, the Blues have a habit of succeeding when opening their campaign at Stamford Bridge, having built up an impressive streak of home wins:
The manner in which the Londoners romped to Premier League glory last season saw them draw plenty of plaudits, including many from Bleacher Report’s own Stan Collymore:
With that in mind, the Blues are big favourites again for glory this year. Mourinho has fashioned a dynamic, diligent squad of players, and after a season getting acclimatised to the abrasive nature of English football, expect the likes of Diego Costa and Thibaut Courtois to perform even better in 2015-16.
It’s also going to be intriguing to see what levels PFA Player of the Year Eden Hazard can reach after a stunning 2014-15. As we can see here courtesy of ESPN FC, WhoScored.com ranked the Belgian sensation as the best player in the Premier League:
Another fascinating facet of the season for the Blues will be how Mourinho looks to integrate young players. Chelsea’s stellar academy sampled glory in both the UEFA Youth League and the FA Youth Cup in the previous campaign, and we’ve already seen glimpses of prodigious talents such as Ruben Loftus-Cheek and Isaiah Brown.
But Mourinho will be squarely focused on winning yet another Premier League title, and already he’ll be meticulously plotting how Chelsea will be approaching each of the 38 games on the aforementioned index.
At this juncture, the Blues are still the team to beat, and getting their season off to a prosperous start would send out an emphatic message in defence of their crown. If Chelsea can begin in the same style as they did in 2014, it’s tough to see any of the other sides in the division hunting down this juggernaut of a football team.
.jpg?w=600 "Colts Release Kenny Moore")
