Chelsea vs Southampton: Saints hold Maurizio Sarri's side to draw at Stamford Bridge

Re-live all of the action from Stamford Bridge

Chelsea: A look back at 2018

Chelsea dropped two points in their bid for a Champions League return as Southampton saw out a stalemate at Stamford Bridge.

Eden Hazard was twice denied by Saints goalkeeper Angus Gunn and Alvaro Morata had a strike ruled out for offside as the Blues' lack of attacking precision was evident once more in the goalless draw.

Chelsea reached the turn of the year in fourth place, five points clear of Arsenal, but the Gunners' win over Fulham on New Year's Day, plus the stubbornness of relegation-threatened Saints, cut their advantage to three points. Re-live the action below

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Preview

What time does it start?

Chelsea vs Southampton kicks off at 7:45pm (GMT)

Where can I watch it?

The match will not be shown live on TV or online in the UK.

Independent Sport will provide you with updates of the action via our live blog.

Player to watch…

Eden Hazard: The Belgian midfielder is on fire for Chelsea with four goals in his last five matches. The fans will be praying that he stays amidst uncertainty surrounding his contract. His new role as a false nine has him involved in nearly every attack and it wouldn’t be a surprise if he runs riot in the middle tonight.

Form guide…

• Chelsea: WWLWWL
• Southampton: LLWWLL

Odds…

• Chelsea to win: 27/100
• Southampton to win: 21/2
• Draw: 24/5

Prediction:

Chelsea 2-0 Southampton: Southampton got off to a good start under Hassenhuttl but the results have dipped and they’ve been poor since. Chelsea looked calm and composed against Crystal Palace on Sunday so I feel they’ll win this one relatively comfortably at home.

Key Points

• Chelsea XI: Kepa, Azpilicueta, Rudiger, Luiz, Alonso, Jorginho, Kante, Barkley, Willian, Morata, Hazard
• Southampton XI: Gunn, Cedric, Yoshida, Vestergaard, Bednarek, Valery, Romeu, Ward-Prowse, Armstrong, Ings, Redmond

[2 January 2019 16:01 · Jack Watson]

Welcome

Good evening and welcome to The Independent's live coverage of tonight's Premier League football.

We will be focusing on Newcastle vs Manchester United to see whether Ole Gunnar Solskjaer can make it four from four. 

[2 January 2019 18:39 · Harry Latham-Coyle]

Six games for our consumption this evening, with 12 more Premier League clubs looking to get 2019 off to the perfect start.

We'll be bringing you goal updates from the five 7.45pm kick-offs and more detailed coverage of Newcastle and Manchester United at St James' Park, which gets under way at 8.00pm.

Team news from each of the five early games will be in shortly....

[2 January 2019 18:49 · Harry Latham-Coyle]

TEAM NEWS - Bournemouth vs Watford

Kick-off at the Vitality Stadium has been delayed by 15 minutes due to an incident in the East Stand.

Nevertheless, here is the team news:

[2 January 2019 18:50 · Harry Latham-Coyle]

TEAM NEWS - Chelsea vs Southampton

[2 January 2019 18:51 · Harry Latham-Coyle]

TEAM NEWS - Huddersfield vs Burnley

[2 January 2019 18:53 · Harry Latham-Coyle]

TEAM NEWS - West Ham vs Brighton

Samir Nasri comes straight onto the West Ham bench after joining the club this week

[2 January 2019 18:54 · Harry Latham-Coyle]

TEAM NEWS - Wolves vs Crystal Palace

[2 January 2019 18:55 · Harry Latham-Coyle]

​Got all of that?

As mentioned, this man returns to the Premier League tonight, Samir Nasri on the bench and ready for action should West Ham call upon him this evening.

[2 January 2019 18:58 · Harry Latham-Coyle]

Not too long to digest all of the team news elsewhere.

Just a couple of minutes until the starting lineups are named on Tyneside. Will Alexis Sanchez make an immediate return to Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's first XI?

[2 January 2019 19:00 · Harry Latham-Coyle]

TEAM NEWS - Newcastle vs Manchester United