Swansea City vs. Chelsea: Team News, Live Stream, TV Info, Ticket News
Guus Hiddink welcomed Antonio Conte to Chelsea on Friday, using his pre-match press conference to describe the new Blues coach as the ideal candidate to take the club forward.
It was confirmed on Monday that Conte will take over from Hiddink as Jose Mourinho's permanent replacement at the end of this season.
"It’s the choice of the club, and when you look at his record, he had a good spell at Juventus, where he won the title in Italy," said Chelsea's interim boss.
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"That’s always good because this club is always keen to play for titles. It’s a big job regardless of the circumstances Chelsea have been in this year. He is equipped, able and used to the pressure which is always on at big clubs to win titles."
Hiddink also confirmed that Conte met with the Chelsea squad after being announced as the new manager.
"He was presented on Monday and requested to come and meet and shake hands with the players," he said. "Everyone met very briefly on Tuesday."
As for this weekend's trip to Swansea City, Hiddink explained that we can expect another youthful Chelsea lineup as he deals with injuries and suspensions.
It was a similar case last week when Chelsea defeated Aston Villa 4-0.
"We have a few injured players so we will bring in some youngsters," Hiddink confirmed.
"We had only a few strikers in December and January because, apart from Diego Costa, they were all injured. [Bertrand] Traore wasn’t strongly knocking on the door at that time, and now we have strikers who must compete for the position.
"Who will start [against Swansea]? You will see."
Date: Saturday, April 9
Time: 3 p.m. BST/10 a.m. ET
Venue: Liberty Stadium, England
TV Info: Match of the Day (BBC1, 10.30 p.m. UK only)/NBC Sports (U.S. only)
Live Stream: No UK live stream/NBCSN (U.S. only)
Last 5 Games
| Mar. 2 | Arsenal 1-2 Swansea City |
| Mar. 5 | Swansea City 1-0 Norwich City |
| Mar. 12 | Bournemouth 3-2 Swansea City |
| Mar. 19 | Swansea City 1-0 Aston Villa |
| Apr. 2 | Stoke City 2-2 Swansea City |
| Mar. 5 | Chelsea 1-1 Stoke City |
| Mar. 9 | Chelsea 1-2 Paris Saint-Germain |
| Mar. 12 | Everton 2-0 Chelsea |
| Mar. 19 | Chelsea 2-2 West Ham United |
| Apr. 2 | Aston Villa 0-4 Chelsea |
Predicted Lineups
Chelsea have a long injury list as they travel to Swansea City this weekend with some key players missing.
John Terry is out with an Achilles injury, while Eden Hazard continues to recover from his hip and groin problem. Loic Remy limped off against Aston Villa last week, so with Diego Costa also suspended, it means Hiddink must choose from Traore, Alexandre Pato and Radamel Falcao to lead the line.
Gary Cahill faces a late fitness test.
As for Swansea, Jordi Amat, Andre Ayew and Leon Britton are all doubts.
Swansea City (4-2-3-1): Fabianski; Rangel, Fernandez, Williams, Taylor; Fer, Cork; Barrow, Sigurdsson, Routledge; Paloschi
Chelsea (4-2-3-1): Courtois; Azpilicueta, Miazga, Ivanovic, Kenedy; Mikel, Fabregas; Willian, Loftus-Cheek, Pedro; Pato.
Key Players
Gylfi Sigurdsson
Swansea's Icelandic midfielder is a major goal threat from the midfield. He has a knack for arriving late in the box to score goals but is also capable from range.
His eight goals in 13 matches since the turn of the year have been a big reason for the Swans pulling away from the relegation zone. From a side that was threatened with being pulled into the scrap at the bottom, Swansea have climbed the table gradually to relative comfort, with Sigurdsson a big part of that.
His strike pulled Swansea back into contention against Stoke City last week, so Chelsea should expect him to be a big threat on Saturday.
Pedro
Fresh from scoring a brace against Aston Villa last weekend, Pedro is finally beginning to enjoy some consistency at Chelsea. Injuries to others around him have meant Pedro has featured more regularly, and he has benefited from the extra game time.
Cutting in from the flanks, Pedro can cause real problems for opponents. We saw that at Villa Park last week, where he would have disappointed to be taken off when on a hat-trick.
The Spaniard injects some pace to the Chelsea attack, which is vital when playing away from home and allows Chelsea to counter more effectively.
Ticket Information
For ticket information on all Premier League games, visit the official site or go to the ticket page on Swansea City's official website.
Prediction
Swansea City 1-2 Chelsea
Odds
Home Win: +318
Away Win: -120
Draw: +251
First Goalscorer: Alexandre Pato (6/1)
Odds via Odds Shark and Oddschecker
Garry Hayes is Bleacher Report's lead Chelsea correspondent. All quotes were obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted. Follow him on Twitter @garryhayes
