How close are Chelsea to making English football history as wait for Premier League clean sheet goes on?

Chelsea have gone into the international break still waiting for their first Premier League clean sheet under Xabi Alonso.

Although three other teams find themselves in the same situation, it is the fact that the Blues have now gone a total of 21 matches without recording a shutout in the top flight that will concern the club's supporters.

Alonso can point to Chelsea missing Marco Palestra and Moises Caicedo for all but 14 minutes of their opening five games as one reason for their vulnerability in defence.

Nevertheless, at a time when Chelsea sit in 10th position in the Premier League table, the West Londoners are close to entering the conversation where a number of specific statistics and records are concerned.

Where do Chelsea's clean-sheet woes rank in English football history?

Chelsea's first objective will be on ensuring that they do not break an unwanted club record, with their all-time run without registering a shutout reaching 31 matches in 1961 and 1962.

However, in stats supplied by Football Rates, Chelsea would have to go another 18 league fixtures without a clean sheet to enter the all-time top 10.

Bristol hold the all-time record of most consecutive games without a clean sheet at 49, a streak that was put together in the Third Division South across 1932 and 1933.

Since the turn of the millennium, Colchester United is the only entry into the top 12, with their 38-game run in the 2007-08 Championship.

However, Chelsea are currently second in the rankings when it comes to active streak without a clean sheet.

Only Preston North End at 23 matches sit above Chelsea. They are the only two teams to have gone more than 16 league games without a shutout, emphasising how poor Chelsea's current run actually is.

Newcastle United on longer wait for Premier League home clean sheet

While Chelsea have gone 10 games without keeping a Premier League clean sheet at Stamford Bridge, Newcastle United are on a run of 12 fixtures without recording a shutout at St James' Park.

Meanwhile, Barnsley have gone as many as 20 games without keeping out the opposition at Oakwell in League One.

In away fixtures, though, Chelsea, with 14, are only behind Burnley (23) in terms of successive fixtures without a clean sheet.