In his pre-match press conference earlier today, Chelsea head coach Antonio Conte hinted at the continuing use of the 3-4-3 tactical formation that made its debut against Hull City on the previous matchday. Even though it had to shoehorn in César Azpilicueta as one of the three center-backs, Conte was pleased with the intensity, the high press, and the compact look. With an additional two weeks to work on these tactics since, it's perhaps unsurprising that we would try it again this weekend. It probably won't feature Azpilicueta again however.
In the pre-match presser, Conte claimed that he had four center backs available to choose from, which means that one would have to miss out. With John Terry back healthy, presumably he would be one of the three picked to start, probably alongside David Luiz, who's tailor-made for a three-man look, and maybe Gary Cahill, who remains undroppable. Whether the fourth center back is the no-longer undroppable Branislav Ivanovic, or the versatile Azpilicueta is academic at this point. (Kurt Zouma might be back in the mix by the end of the month, too.)
The rest of the lineup should be very similar to what we saw at Hull City, with either Oscar or Pedro deputizing for Willian, who's back in Brazil to attend to family matters after the tragic passing of his mother. My money's on Oscar, who does tend to work really well with Diego Costa and is very good through the center as well (which the role does call for in attack), though I could also see Azpilicueta given a go at wing-back with Victor Moses pushing up into the attacking band.
3-4-3/5-4-1:
Courtois | David Luiz, Terry, Cahill | Alonso, Matić, Kanté, Moses | Hazard, Costa, Oscar
The community's preferred lineup has also transitioned into a three-man based look, but with Cesar Azpilicueta retaining a place and Cesc Fàbregas getting the nod over Nemanja Matić. These players might fit better into a 3-5-2 (with Hazard as a second striker and Oscar in midfield), but let's mold them into a 3-4-3 instead.
3-4-3/5-4-1:
Courtois | David Luiz, Terry, Azpilicueta | Alonso, Fàbregas, Kanté, Moses | Hazard, Costa, Oscar