BATE 0-0 Chelsea LIVE: Europa League scores, goals and highlights, Eden Hazard starts

BATE Borisov vs Chelsea: Europa League LIVE scores, goals and updates

Chelsea XI: Kepa, Zappacosta, Cahill, Christensen, Emerson, Barkley, Jorginho, Loftus-Cheek, Pedro, Giroud, Hazard.

BATE XI: Scherbitski, Rios, Volkov, Filipenko, Filipovic, Hleb, Dragun, Baga, Skavysh, Signevich, Stasevich.

BATE 0-0 CHELSEA

  • Chelsea can qualify with a victory tonight
  • Dmitri Baga hits the post after 12 minutes

BATE 0-0 CHELSEA

HT: Zero second of stoppage time. Small mercies, eh?

41: Chelsea corner… diverted wide by the leaping Olivier Giroud, who did well to nip ahead of Volkov.

38: Somebody please send caffeine! Emerson tries to liven things up with a shot from distance but It’s landed about 6-yards wide of the post.

Rangers now 2-2 over in Moscow. Why aren’t we watching that game?!

BATE Borisov vs Chelsea: Europa League LIVE scores, goals and updates

BATE Borisov vs Chelsea: Europa League LIVE scores, goals and updates (Image: REUTERS)

BATE Borisov vs Chelsea: Europa League LIVE scores, goals and updates

BATE Borisov vs Chelsea: Europa League LIVE scores, goals and updates (Image: REUTERS)

35: So… seen any good box-sets recently? This is utterly dull and the slippery conditions aren’t helping with plenty of long balls skidding off the surface and out of play.

Chelsea simply aren’t moving the ball quickly enough and It’s rather easy for the 11 defenders of BATE to deal with.

32: Eden Hazard looks frustrated. He’s just got no space to work with as the hosts stick diligently to their instructions. BATE goalkeeper Scherbitski is a relieved man when nearly allowing Emerson’s cross to slide through his legs.

29: All going on in Moscow! Steven Gerrard’s Rangers are currently winning 2-1 against Spartak Moscow with 30 minutes on the clock. They’ll top the group if things stay like this.

26: Feels like a very well attended training session. Chelsea passing it around in midfield looking for an opening, BATE just protecting their 18-yard box.

BATE Borisov vs Chelsea: Europa League LIVE scores, goals and updates

BATE Borisov vs Chelsea: Europa League LIVE scores, goals and updates (Image: REUTERS)

23: They’ve only been tested a few times but I must say that Cahill and Christensen aren’t looking 100 percent assured. And that’s with Chelsea boasting 80 percent possession in the opening 23 minutes.

20: Snapshot! Olivier Giroud brings down Ross Barkley’s lofted pass before wildly firing wide. He’s looking a bit rusty tonight – hardly surprising having only just returned from injury on a chilly evening in Belarus.

17: BATE Borisov are a completely different animal at home. Two weeks ago Chelsea were basically able to score as many as they wished – no such luck this evening. Maurizio Sarri’s side are going to have to work for their points tonight.

14: He’s struck the beans on toast! Baga can’t see any options – so decides instead to unleash a swerving 25-yarder that rattles against the post. Ross Barkley didn’t close him down quick enough and Kepa gets nowhere near it.

BATE Borisov vs Chelsea: Europa League LIVE scores, goals and updates

BATE Borisov vs Chelsea: Europa League LIVE scores, goals and updates (Image: REUTERS)

11: I like Davide Zappacosta. Lots of talk of the Italian leaving in January – but I think Maurizio Sarri would be wise to keep him around.

Anyway, he does well down the right flank, beating his man to swing in a cross, but Olivier Giroud can’t get on the end of it.

8: Ouch! Eden Hazard down in a heap as Filipenko blatantly thwacks the back of his legs. I’m thinking of making the Belgian my fantasy football captain this weekend – so leave off!

5: Pedro looks for one of those signature cutbacks into the penalty area but his curling effort is blocked before Ross Barkley spanks it over via another deflection. All a bit messy.

3: Decent enough start to the match from both sides. BATE Borisov have already shown more attacking intent than they did in 90 minutes at Stamford Bridge. Chelsea, meanwhile, nearly caught the hosts cold on the break but Olivier Giroud couldn’t slip Eden Hazard through.

BATE 0-0 CHELSEA

1: There’s a pretty feisty atmosphere as the player emerged from the tunnel. It’s dark, foggy, wet and about two degrees inside the stadium – ideal conditions for an English side, right?

We’re underway. Remember, Chelsea will qualify for the next stage with a win AND could top the group if other results go their way.

BATE Borisov vs Chelsea: Europa League LIVE scores, goals and updates

BATE Borisov vs Chelsea: Europa League LIVE scores, goals and updates (Image: REUTERS)

BATE Borisov vs Chelsea: Europa League LIVE scores, goals and updates

BATE Borisov vs Chelsea: Europa League LIVE scores, goals and updates (Image: REUTERS)

Martial > Hazard…

17:52: I thought I would drop this bomb in ahead of kick off for you guys to mull over.

Anthony Martial can become “better than Eden Hazard,” according to former United midfielder Paul Ince.

“No team will want to face Anthony Martial right now,” the former England international told Paddy Power ahead of the Manchester Derby on Sunday.

“He’s playing like the player we all knew he was. And it’s interesting to see that now Mourinho seems to have found a team and formula that works, the results are coming in.

“Martial is Man United’s Eden Hazard. He’s their world-class attacking player, the one that can do something special and make things happen when you most need it.

“He’s only 22, and if he carries on in this form, he’ll be as good, if not better than Hazard.”

BATE Borisov vs Chelsea: Europa League LIVE scores, goals and updates

BATE Borisov vs Chelsea: Europa League LIVE scores, goals and updates (Image: REUTERS)

‘Liverpool struggled a lot’

17:50: Mateo Kovacic is eager to avoid a Liverpool-style banana skin tonight.

Obviously Liverpool had beaten Red Star Belgrade 4-0 in the Champions League, before losing their away meeting 2-0 on Tuesday.

“I watched the game, Liverpool struggled a lot,” Kovacic said. “In Belgrade the atmosphere is tough. It’s difficult to play there, like here. These are games where you need to concentrate a lot or you will lose the game.

“The most important thing is we need to be prepared so that what happened to Liverpool doesn’t happen to us.”

BATE Borisov vs Chelsea: Europa League LIVE scores, goals and updates

BATE Borisov vs Chelsea: Europa League LIVE scores, goals and updates (Image: BETTINGEXPERT)

Twitter round-up

Mikey: Strong starting XI. Should be interesting to see Ross Barkley and Ruben Loftus-cheek play together. Also happy to see Olivier Giroud and the main man Eden Hazard back in the team, I’m predicting a hammering. 4-0.

Dave: Got a bad feeling with Gary Cahill and Andreas Christensen in defence. It worries me. God knows why Antonio Conte had them in first eleven last season!

Stuart: Three English players in a Chelsea starting line-up and another two on the bench?! I must be hallucinating.

Eden up!

17:40: Despite winning league titles under Antonio Conte and Jose Mourinho, as well as a Champions League with Roberto Di Matteo, research from bettingexpert shows Eden Hazard is playing better than ever before under current Chelsea boss, Maurizio Sarri.

The Italian has his star man finding the back of the net every 99 minutes, hitting the target with 79% of his shots and contributing towards a Chelsea goal every 63 minutes, a study from the world’s biggest social network of sports betting tipsters reveals.

Last season, under Conte, Hazard was dribbling the ball better than ever before with a success rate of 76%, but the fiery Italian could only rely on Hazard for a goal every three hours, while his shot accuracy slipped to just 62%.

So who’s the Special one?

BATE Borisov vs Chelsea: Europa League LIVE scores, goals and updates

BATE Borisov vs Chelsea: Europa League LIVE scores, goals and updates (Image: GETTY)

Form and history

17:35: BATE have won their last three domestic league games and on Sunday clinched another Belarusian league title.

However, they have not won any of their of their European home games this season and followed up a win at Vidi of Hungary by losing to PAOK Salonika of Greece and 3-1 at Chelsea.

Olivier Giroud, who joined Chelsea in January, scored a penalty in each of Arsenal’s Europa League group games with BATE.

Only Mohamed Elneny remains of the Gunners’ goalscorers from the first match, in London, with Mathieu Debuchy, Jack Wilshere and Theo Walcott all having left the club.

Arsenal scored 10 goals in the two games, conceding just two. BATE also played Everton in the 2009-10 group stage, winning 1-0 in Liverpool.

BATE Borisov vs Chelsea: Europa League LIVE scores, goals and updates

BATE Borisov vs Chelsea: Europa League LIVE scores, goals and updates (Image: EMPICS)

Speaking of English players…

17:30: In-form Bournemouth striker Callum Wilson, who has been linked with a shock January move to Stamford Bridge, was called up to the England squad for the first time today for games against the US and Croatia.

Everton defender Michael Keane, Chelsea midfielder Ruben Loftus-Cheek and Manchester United forward Jesse Lingard have been recalled to the squad by manager Gareth Southgate after missing the last set of internationals.

England’s record goalscorer Wayne Rooney is also in the squad for the friendly international against America on November 15, which will be used to pay tribute to England’s record goalscorer.

D’ya know…

17:25: This is the first time Chelsea have started three English players (Gary Cahill, Ross Barkley, Ruben Loftus-Cheek) in a European match since April 2014 vs Atletico Madrid in the Champions League.

Can you name the previous three? No prizes because I’m skint.

BATE Borisov vs Chelsea: Europa League LIVE scores, goals and updates

BATE Borisov vs Chelsea: Europa League LIVE scores, goals and updates (Image: GETTY)

Permutations…

17:20: You know It’s the business end of a competition when I start throwing the P word around. It’s like the word ‘adverse’ is basically reserved for train announcers telling you that ‘adverse weather conditions’ are going to leave you stranded.

Anyway, Premier League duo Arsenal and Chelsea simply need to win to book their place in the last 32 of the Europa League.

Chelsea team news

17:15: Eden Hazard starts as one of seven changes for Chelsea. The Blues, who beat Crystal Palace 3-1 on Sunday, are seeking a victory and qualification to the last 32.

Striker Olivier Giroud also starts, with Kepa Arrizabalaga, Jorginho, Ross Barkley and Pedro the players retaining their places.

Arrival…

17:10: Happy bunch aren’t they! The Chelsea players arrived at the Borisov Arena around 45 minutes ago looking very focused indeed.

No wonder they look miserable – I’ve just checked the temperate in Barysaw and it’s a chilly 4 degrees. Bad night for a well-struck ball to the inner thigh…

Extended run out

17:05: As you can see, Maurizio Sarri has kept his word. The Italian tactician said he intended to field Eden Hazard – and he’s done exactly that.

Hazard missed three games with a back injury, returning as a substitute in last Sunday’s Premier League win over Crystal Palace.

On Hazard travelling, Sarri added: “There is not any risk, otherwise he would stay in Cobham, of course. We thought for him it’s better to play, not for 90 minutes, but to play after two weeks without training. In the last match he played only for 30 minutes. The best for him is he will play 45, 50 minutes.”

BATE Borisov vs Chelsea: Europa League LIVE scores, goals and updates

BATE Borisov vs Chelsea: Europa League LIVE scores, goals and updates (Image: GETTY)

Twitter round-up

Harry: Ruben Loftus-Cheek and Ross Barkley in the midfield together will be interesting. No doubt they both be fighting for that spot in the first team!

Prince: Wow, that midfield three!!Very excited about seeing our English sharp shooters playing together in the middle. A win and minutes for Hudson-Odoi and we’ve got the full set.

Donovan: Since Maurizio Sarri said Eden Hazard gets 45-55 min if we are up which we should be then bring on Hudson-Odoi! We want to see him!

Plenty of armchair managers around this afternoon. I’m sure Maurizio Sarri will be taking their thoughts into consideration.

One to watch

16:55: Telling Chelsea to worry about 37-year-old Alexander Hleb feels like telling Anthony Joshua to worry about Lord Sugar knocking him out.

In any case, Hleb may not have the energy of old, but he is still a quality technician. Midfielders Mirko Ivanic, Maksim Skavysh, Igor Stasevich and striker Nikolai Signevich all have keen eyes for goal.

BATE Borisov vs Chelsea: Europa League LIVE scores, goals and updates

BATE Borisov vs Chelsea: Europa League LIVE scores, goals and updates (Image: GETTY)

The starting XI…

16:50: What else is there to say other than… Eden Hazard starts! Yes, the Belgian midfielder makes his first start since recovering from a troubling back injury. Full analysis of Maurizio Sarri’s selection on the way!

BATE XI: Scherbitski, Rios, Volkov, Filipenko, Filipovic, Hleb, Dragun, Baga, Skavysh, Signevich, Stasevich.

Subs: Chichkan, Yablonski, Berezkin, Ivanic, Tuominen, Polyakov, Moukam.

Chelsea XI: Kepa, Zappacosta, Cahill, Christensen, Emerson, Barkley, Jorginho, Loftus-Cheek, Pedro, Giroud, Hazard.

Subs: Cabellero, Azpilicueta, Ampadu, Kante, Kovacic, Hudson-Odoi, Willian.

BATE Borisov vs Chelsea: Europa League LIVE scores, goals and updates

BATE Borisov vs Chelsea: Europa League LIVE scores, goals and updates (Image: GETTY)

Twitter round-up

Aditya: Hoping that Cahill and Christensen can put up a strong show today. With Fabregas not playing, it will be interesting to see Kante in the defensive-midfield role again. Would love to see CHO come on if things are going well. If not then Hazard to the rescue.

Chris: Huge respect to the Chelsea fans who have made the trip to Belarus! Another game where it’s important to keep our momentum going and come away with another win. Hopefully a chance to see some of our young players tonight. A competition I strongly feel we can win.

Goldie: LET’S KICK SOME ASS TODAY!!!!

Aditya and Chris went with reasoned essays – Goldie kept things simple. I appreciate both tweets in their own way.

Evening…

16:40: Or should I say afternoon? Who cares. Yep, we start early on a Thursday with a bundle of Europa League action to enjoy.

Chelsea will be seeking a fourth win from four Europa League Group L games against BATE Borisov tonight.

And if the fixture sounds familiar – It should.

We watched Ruben Loftus-Cheek score a hat-trick past them at Stamford Bridge during a 3-1 win a fortnight ago.

But If you think a result can’t possibly change that much in 14 days – just look at Liverpool’s recent trip to Red Star Belgrade…

Anyway, team news and line-ups coming next. Standby.

BATE Borisov vs Chelsea: Europa League LIVE scores, goals and updates

BATE Borisov vs Chelsea: Europa League LIVE scores, goals and updates (Image: REUTERS)

BATE vs CHELSEA

Eden Hazard has travelled for Chelsea’s Europa League clash at BATE Borisov, but Cesc Fabregas was a late withdrawal through illness.

Fabregas reported a fever on Wednesday morning, so N’Golo Kante was called up late, joining Hazard on the trip to Belarus.

Alvaro Morata, Marcos Alonso, David Luiz, Antonio Rudiger and Victor Moses have been left at home.

Chelsea provisional squad: Kepa, Caballero, Jorginho, Kante, Barkley, Hazard, Pedro, Kovacic, Giroud, Zappacosta, Willian, Cahill, Christensen, Azpilicueta, Emerson Palmieri, Loftus-Cheek, Hudson-Odoi, Ampadu, Bulka.