BRUISED Chelsea kick off their FA Cup campaign with a home tie against Scunthorpe. Easy win? We asked Chris Graham (@chrisgraham79).
Chelsea v Scunthorpe | Sunday 14:00 | BT Sport 2
When you look at Chelsea's cup record this season it's actually pretty decent. Yes, losing to penalties to Stoke in the Capital One Cup wasn't ideal but they did crush League One highflyers Walsall in the previous round. In the Champions League they won their group with an impressive 13 point haul.
So if you're nervous about backing Chelsea then those facts should certainly soothe you. I'm expecting a comfortable win here against League One side Scunthorpe as the London club bid to get back on track.
Last Sunday's win over Crystal Palace offered a glimmer of what might have been this season. They overpowered the South London side 3-0 at Selhurst Park with a number of high-profile players stepping up to the plate at last.
Guus Hiddink has come in and has oversaw two wins and two draws since he took over from the sacked Jose Mourinho. The club seems more settled and the histrionics of the Portuguese are long gone.
It's a big ol' task for Scunthorpe here. They haven't beaten a top flight side in the FA Cup for 46 years and quotes as big as 22/1 are being flashed around.
Mark Robins' side lie in the wrong half of League One, have won just one of their last six third-tier fixtures and were knocked out of the Capital One Cup by Barnsley. A tough day awaits.
I think this is the kind of fixture Chelsea will relish. They should be far too good for their opponents and it may provide them with an opportunity to exercise all their frustrations of the last few months.
This team are angry, battered and bruised and they could turn up foaming at the mouth like a dog. Talking of dogs I'll be honing in on Diego Costa here and backing him to score two or more at 100/30 with Betfred.
He's scored three in his last two games and looks focussed and sharp with a new man at the helm. Hopefully he'll play a big part here in this FA Cup game.
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