Chelsea Premier League fixtures: Enzo Maresca’s side handed horror run-in with four top six clashes in six weeks

Chelsea's challenging start to the 2025/26 Premier League season, featuring four consecutive London derbies, could impact their early performance and influence punters regarding potential outcomes. Betting on Chelsea to perform well against Crystal Palace may be risky considering their limited pre-season preparation following a demanding Club World Cup campaign.

Chelsea will face a London derby against Crystal Palace to kick-start their Premier League season after a gruelling summer. Enzo Maresca‘s side battled to a respectable fourth place in the league last season, while also completing the Uefa set by adding the Uefa Conference League to their trophy collection.

However, a gruelling summer at the Club World Cup – which started with a 2-0 win over LAFC on Monday – means Maresca’s squad will be short on pre-season training time. And the Stamford Bridge outfit will get no sympathy from rivals after they discovered their fixture schedule for the upcoming 2025/26 season, kicking off with a 2pm Sunday clash on August 17.

The London giants won’t need to travel far from home in the first four weeks of the season after being handed FOUR derbies in a row, with Palace giving way to matches against West Ham, Fulham and Brentford. September 20 pits Chelsea away to Manchester United before hosting Brighton.

Champions Liverpool are pencilled in for October 4 in their last game before the first international break. As we get into November, Tottenham will play host to Maresca’s side before Chelsea in turn host Arsenal at the end of the month.

The festive period sees Chelsea visit Newcastle before Christmas before hosting Aston Villa after. Chelsea welcome in the New Year with a horror clash at Manchester City before once again being hit by a run of four matches in the capital, this time starting out with Fulham away and ending with the Hammers at home at the end of January.

The Blues take on Arsenal for the second time on February 28 before butting heads with Aston Villa and Newcastle in the following weeks. Their run-in is no laughing matter either. April sees Chelsea host both Man City and Man Utd in consecutive weeks before they pay a visit to Brighton.

The month of May may not be so merry with clashes against Nottingham Forest, Liverpool, and Tottenham as their final home game before the final match of the season away at Sunderland. THIS IS A DEVELOPING STORY.

The Sun