Chelsea vs Ajax Prediction: Big win on the cards for hosts

Chelsea host Ajax at Stamford Bridge in the Champions League tonight (20:00 BST, TNT Sports 2) with one win and one defeat to their name in the league phase so far. Ajax are at the bottom of the table having lost two from two, so the Blues will fancy their chances of bagging a big win. 

Below you can find my Chelsea vs Ajax predictions for team news and betting tips as we search for a winner. 

Team News

Chelsea’s disciplinary record lately has been extremely poor, ending four of the last six games with 10 men. Malo Gusto was sent off against Nottingham Forest but will be available in the Champions League tonight, however Joao Pedro is suspended after his red v Benfica. 

He will join a hefty injury list including Cole Palmer, Levi Colwil, Dario Essugo, Benoit Badiashile and Liam Delap while Enzo Fernandez is a doubt as he struggles with a knee issue. Moises Caicedo returned to play 45 minutes in that win over Forest, and could either replace Romeo Lavia or join him in midfield if captain Reece James drops back to right-back. 

Up top, Marc Guiu could be given the nod given there’s no Joao Pedro or Delap, with Estevao also pushing for a start out wide. The young Brazilian will have to get past stiff competition in the form of Alejandro Garnacho and Pedro Neto to secure a spot in the XI. 

Football Odds

For Ajax, Owen Wijndal is back with the squad have picked up a muscle injury earlier in the season, but Kasper Dolberg and Steven Berghuis are both out injured. They join midfielder Branco van den Boomen on the sidelines as he suffers from a back injury. 

Liverpool loanee James McConnell may be handed a start in midfield in his absence while a familiar face in the form of Wout Weghorst should start up front for the Dutch outfit.

Today's Football Fixtures

Chelsea vs Ajax Odds

Chelsea are 1/4 to win this game, giving them an implied win probability of 80% in this Champions League tussle. A draw is 11/2 and an Ajax win can be backed at 11/1 which is a big price for the four-time European champions. 

Over 2.5 goals is 2/5, BTTS is 4/5 and Guiu is the favourite to open the scoring at 4/1. 

Price Boost - Chelsea to win both halves @ 7/4 

This should be relatively straightforward for the home side, even with their attacking absentees. With Palmer out, you may worry for their creativity, but luckily enough for Chelsea fans, they’ve spent over £1bn on other players so their squad is pretty strong. 

Chelsea, since losing at home to Brighton, have won three games in a row and look to have found a rhythm. Ajax meanwhile have really struggled this term under former Everton defender John Heitinga, losing both Champions League fixtures to Inter Milan and Marseille without scoring a goal. They are now winless in their last three outings having been beaten by AZ Alkmaar at home on Saturday, and they face real goalscoring issues. 

Chelsea should be able to sweep them aside, and the Price Boost on them to win both halves is worth considering.

Correct Score - Chelsea 3-0 Ajax @ 15/2 

I like picking out a correct score in a game like this as it delivers major value in my opinion. I think we can be fairly confident that Chelsea will win this game, and they will do so without conceding given Ajax’s attacking struggles. The Dutch giants are yet to register a goal in Europe this season, managing just four shots on target in total in 180 minutes so far. 

They are likely to find it tough at Stamford Bridge, so I’ll back a comfortable home win. I also like this correct score prediction because Chelsea don’t have an out and out goalscorer in this predicted line-up. We can avoid backing a goalscorer and instead back the team to score three goals without reply at a big price. They beat Forest 3-0 last time out and I’ll back them to register the same scoreline here. 

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