Benitez takes wounded Blues to fortress Britannia: The Odds

Chelsea are 1.95 shots with bet365 and Betfred to beat Stoke at the Britannia Stadium in what promises to be a titanic battle.

The Potters are unbeaten at home this season with 5 wins and 5 draws to their name and the last time the lost in the league here was almost a year ago when Sunderland snatched a 1-0 victory.

However the stats also reveal that they have failed to score in six of the nine Premier League games against Chelsea and only once in each of the other three.

The Blues have also won seven and lost none of the nine league meetings with the Tony Pulis’s men so there are plenty of positives to suggest they are capable of securing all three points

Fernando Torres put in a lifeless display in Chelsea’s Capital One Cup defeat at Swansea in midweek, and I couldn’t back him at 6 with Betfred in the first goalscorer market on the back of that.

I fully expect Demba Ba to start in this to provide a boost to the attack and he has to be the choice at 5.5 with Paddy Power to net the opener as he has scored four goals in four league appearances against Stoke.

Another bet that stands out like a sore thumb is under 2.5 goals at 1.8 with Betfred as the last four Premier League meetings between the pair have produced just four goals scored in total.

With that stat in mind I am going to take Chelsea to edge this 1-0, and that outcome can be backed at 7 with Betfred.