Chelsea will look to continue their charge towards the Premier League title when they take on West Ham United at the London Stadium on Monday night.
Antonio Conte's side go into the match with a seven-point lead over the chasing pack, but West Ham will be hoping to slow the procession down in order to climb back into the top half of the table.
West Ham
© SilverHub
In a season that has seen the Hammers struggle to adapt to life at a new home and also lose arguably their best player midway through the campaign, manager Slaven Bilic will be fairly content that his side are challenging for a top-half finish rather than slugging it with those at the bottom of the table.
It looked like it could be a long and arduous campaign for the Hammers during the first half of the season, but they have since turned their form around, with six of their nine league wins coming in their last 11 matches.
That includes an ongoing run of just one defeat in their last six league games to lift them away from danger, although there is still a bit of work to do despite 11 points now separating them from the bottom three.
Two more wins should be enough to put Bilic's side on the brink of safety, but fans may not be entirely confident of getting one of those when the champions-elect visit on Monday night given their poor record against the teams above them in the table.
As things stood at the start of the weekend, West Ham had only amassed three points from a possible 33 in games against better-placed sides, failing to win any of their 11 matches against the top eight.
Victories for Stoke City and Southampton on Saturday saw West Ham drop down to 11th, but a draw on Monday would be enough to restore their place in the top half while victory would see them return to ninth where they began the weekend.
It is a quirk of the Hammers' form that they have not won their opening league game of a month since March of last year, though, and they come into this match off the back of successive draws against West Bromwich Albion and Watford.
West Ham's home form also leaves a lot to be desired, having won just one of their last five outings across all competitions at the London Stadium, losing three and conceding 13 goals in the process.
Indeed, only five teams have amassed fewer Premier League points in front of their owns fans than Bilic's side this season, while only Middlesbrough have scored fewer home goals.
There is a long way to go before the Hammers turn the London Stadium into a fortress, then, and it will take an unexpected change in form to prevent them from being ransacked once again on Chelsea's first league visit to their new home.
Recent form: WWLWDD
Chelsea
© SilverHub
As the weeks roll by, it is increasingly hard to see any side reeling Chelsea in at the top of the Premier League table.
Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester City continue to linger on the periphery of the title race, with victories for both sides on Sunday closing the gap, but should Chelsea respond at the London Stadium then their 10-point lead at the top will be restored.
With only 11 matches remaining for the top three after this gameweek, Conte's side are moving towards the home straight and only a dramatic collapse from the West Londoners would prevent what looks to be a procession to a second title in three years.
Ever since their back-to-back defeats at the hands of Liverpool and Arsenal in September, though, it has looked highly unlikely that Chelsea would suffer a similar dip in form to those that have hit the teams below them in the table at various stages of the season, with the Blues now having won 17 of their last 20 league games.
Even more worryingly for West Ham, Chelsea have won 17 of their 19 games against teams not in the top six this term, with the two exceptions ending as draws to give Chelsea an imposing total of 53 points from a possible 57 against opponents outside the leading pack.
Both of those draws have come in away games for Chelsea, though, while all four of their defeats across all competitions this season have come in London - including one on this very ground in the EFL Cup.
There is more encouragement from the fact that Conte has lost two of his three away London derbies in the Premier League, while they have kept just two clean sheets in their last eight league games - a significant dip in form from 10 shutouts in their previous 12.
Chelsea have also won just one away league game so far in 2017 having ended 2016 with six consecutive victories, so there are glimpses of hope for both West Ham and the hangers-on in the title race that the Blues' relentless pace is beginning to slow.
However, only one team in Premier League history has failed to win the title having amassed 63 points or more at this stage of a campaign, and in comparison to last season Chelsea are 10 points better off than reigning champions Leicester City were after 26 games of 2015-16.
Suggestions of homesickness and a possible switch to Inter Milan this summer were brushed aside by Conte this week, and the Italian seems to be fully focused on getting over the line to mark his debut campaign in English football with the title.
Victory over West Ham on Monday would bring that dream another step closer.
Recent form: WWDWDW
Recent form (all competitions): WDWDWW
Team News
© SilverHub
Eden Hazard is Chelsea's main injury worry heading into Monday's match having picked up a knock in training, but the Belgian is expected to recover in time to start.
Aside from that, it is a clean bill of health for the visitors and Conte could name an unchanged side, which would mean another start for Cesc Fabregas after he marked his 300th Premier League appearance with a goal last time out.
Diego Costa is two short of 50 Premier League goals, and a brace in this match would see him become the fifth quickest player to reach a half-century in the league's history.
West Ham's Andy Carroll is also chasing the 50-goal mark, and he could return to the starting XI having missed the last two games with a groin injury.
The former Liverpool man would most likely replace Michail Antonio in the side, with West Ham's top scorer suspended for this match following his red card at Watford last weekend.
Diafra Sakho and Angelo Ogbonna remain longer-term absentees, but Robert Snodgrass is expected to be available despite a warrant being issued for his arrest earlier this week.
Manuel Lanzini will hope to continue his impressive record in London derbies having scored seven goals in 11 games against teams from the capital compared to just four in 38 against non-London clubs.
West Ham possible starting lineup:
Randolph; Kouyate, Fonte, Reid, Cresswell; Noble, Obiang, Feghouli, Snodgrass, Lanzini; Carroll
Chelsea possible starting lineup:
Courtois; Azpilicueta, Luiz, Cahill; Moses, Kante, Fabregas, Alonso; Pedro, Costa, Hazard
Head To Head
This will be Chelsea's first ever league visit to the London Stadium, but they have already lost here this season when West Ham picked up a 2-1 win in the fourth round of the EFL Cup in October.
The Hammers won just two of their last 10 Premier League games against Chelsea at Upton Park, with one draw and seven defeats in that time, but they did win the corresponding fixture 2-1 last season.
That is West Ham's only win in their last eight league meetings with their London rivals, though, while that record stretches even further back to just two wins from the past 21 (D4 L15).
The reverse fixture on the opening weekend of the season saw Costa rescue a 2-1 win for Chelsea at the death after James Collins had cancelled out Hazard's opener.
We say: West Ham 1-2 Chelsea
Three of the last four meetings between these two sides have finished 2-1, and we can see that trend continuing on Monday. Chelsea are full of confidence at the moment and are showing that they can win even when they are not at their best, while West Ham have struggled at home recently.
Barney Corkhill
