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Chelsea team news vs Man Utd: Predicted line up – Hazard in, Sarri makes midfield switch
EDEN HAZARD will return to the Chelsea starting XI when the Blues face Manchester United in their FA Cup Fifth Round clash on Monday (7.30pm).
Chelsea will welcome Eden Hazard back to the starting XI for their meeting with Manchester United at Stamford Bridge.
The Belgian ace was restricted to a substitute appearance during the Europa League win over Malmo in midweek but should come back into the side for the FA Cup tie.
Manager Maurizio Sarri rotated his squad for the trip to Sweden, allowing a number of his key players a rest ahead of the Blues’ busy upcoming schedule.
However, the Italian is likely to recall the majority of his first-team stars to face United with his own job hanging in balance.
Sarri faced calls to quit after Chelsea were thumped 6-0 by Manchester City in the Premier League last weekend, shipping four of those goals inside the first 25 minutes.
The 2-1 win on Thursday thanks to goals from Ross Barkley and Olivier Giroud has eased the pressure on the 60-year-old, although defeat to United and a loss in the Carabao Cup final against City will see spark speculation about his future.
As well as Hazard coming back into the team, N’Golo Kante is expected to feature from the off after being benched in Malmo.
The Frenchman should line up alongside Jorginho while Barkley could keep his place at the expense of Mateo Kovacic.
Marcos Alonso was left out of the squad entirely in midweek but should replace Emerson Palmieri at left-back.
Meanwhile, Antonio Rudiger is likely to replace Andreas Christensen at centre-back with David Luiz and Cesar Azpilicueta completing the back four.
In attack, Gonzalo Higuain should come in for Giroud and one of Pedro or Willian will drop to the bench.
Callum Hudson-Odoi will also have to watch from the sidelines while Ruben Loftus-Cheek is doubtful due to a back injury.
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Chelsea predicted line-up vs Manchester United – FA Cup
(4-3-3): Arrizabalaga; Azpilicueta, Rudiger, Luiz, Alonso; Jorginho, Kantem Barkley; Pedro, Hazard, Higuain