Chelsea vs. Shamrock Rovers: Conference Previews, odds and Predictions

In Thursday's Conference League match against Shamrock Rovers at Stamford Bridge, Chelsea aims to finish the league phase campaign without a single loss.

Two of the league's top defenders square off in this matchup; only Legia Warsaw has let in fewer goals than the other.

Previous Matches and Head-to-head

Chelsea has won all five European matches this season, solidifying their status as pre-tournament favorites to win the Conference League.

Manager Enzo Maresca has led the 'B' squad to the top of the rankings without using superstars like Cole Palmer, Nicolas Jackson, or Moises Caicedo, which makes it even more astounding.

The Blues are the only side in the tournament with a perfect record, so they have already guaranteed their participation in the round of 16. The only thing left to compete for is the top spot.

Assuming Vitoria Guimaraes loses against Fiorentina by less than ten goals, which is very unlikely, they may advance to the top of the 36-team rankings with only one point.

With a comfortable lead going into matchday five, Maresca was allowed to field an even more inexperienced group for the grueling away match in Astana, completing a 7,000-kilometer round journey from Almaty.

After winning all seven of their matches since returning from the international break in November, Chelsea continued their winning streak with a 2-1 triumph against Brentford last weekend despite fielding an unusual team.

They are confident in their ability to send Shamrock crashing to the ground after their last loss to an English team. They will now play an Irish club in Europe for the first time.

The Irish team played four times against the English teams; their worst losses were in the 2011–12 Europa League against Tottenham Hotspur (both games lost) and the 1957–58 European Cup when they lost 9–2 on aggregate to Manchester United.

Their third UEFA group stage berth is a testament to Stephen Bradley's success; they are now in the top eight after a dominant 3-0 victory against Borac Banja Luka.

That brought Rovers' total points to 11, and they have not lost a single game in the league so far, which bodes well for their next challenging away match against the tournament favorites.

Having beaten Larne and TNS earlier in the league round and drawn with seasoned European teams APOEL Nicosia and Rapid Vienna, they have an impressive point count and will play a British club for the third time this season.

However, manager Bradley will know that Shamrock will likely need a point here to keep their place in the top eight and guarantee themselves a spot in the last 16. Ten clubs are all within touching distance of them.

They should be feeling confident, as they have a winning streak of six games on the road. They will want to take advantage of Chelsea's already-through status and ease off a little.

Updates about the Team

Mykhaylo Mudryk's shocking November drug test failure startled the footballing world. Now, he faces a lengthy ban and will be out of action for quite some time.

A more significant rotation is anticipated here as Chelsea closes the gap to Liverpool by two points over the weekend. They would momentarily move to the top if they defeated Everton in Sunday's early start.

Although Mudryk was a regular in the Conference League, he may find his starting spot snatched by one of the young players who impressed last week, such as Marc Guiu, who scored twice against Astana.

Also, Tosin Adarabioyo will be required this weekend due to Benoit Badiashile's injury; thus, Josh Acheampong might get more action.

On loan from Celtic, Johnny Kenny has scored five goals for Shamrock in the league phase, including two in their victory over Borac. Chelsea should watch him because he is tied for first place in the Conference League in scoring.

This might be Kenny's last game for the club, as Celtic will likely recall him in January after the League of Ireland ended in November. He became the first Irishman to score as many goals in a European season since Robbie Keane in 2006-07.

Except for experienced midfielder Rory Gaffney, the only player out for the visitors with an injury is Bradley, who is expected to field a lineup identical to the one that smashed Borac.

Our Predictions

Chelsea to win and over 3.5 goals @ 1.54 on Sky247.ng

With the chance of promotion to the Premier League riding on further strong performances, Chelsea's second-string players will be itching to get in the game after being undefeated on the continent.

Even though Shamrock has been fantastic so far in the league, they haven't played a team on par with Chelsea, which means they risk missing out on a spot in the top eight come playoff time.

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