Chelsea Eye First Win vs West Ham: Estevao Pushes for Start

Estevao will be pushing for a Chelsea start against West Ham on Friday night (Image: Robin Jones/Getty Images)

Chelsea will be looking to register their first win of the 2025/26 Premier League campaign when they return to the pitch on Friday night. Enzo Maresca's team could only manage a point last Sunday as they were held to a 0-0 draw at home to Crystal Palace .

The Blues will once again be coming up against London opposition as they travel across the capital to take on West Ham. Graham Potter and the Hammers are already in desperate need of a positive result after falling to a 3-0 defeat at newly-promoted Sunderland last weekend.

Tosin Adarabioyo for Josh Acheampong

Highly-rated youngster Josh Acheampong got the nod to start alongside Trevoh Chalobah against Crystal Palace and he put in a strong performance to catch the eye in west London . Despite his showing, the academy graduate could be the player at risk if Chelsea are to receive a boost on the injury front when it comes to Tosin Adarabioyo after he missed out due to a small injury.

All will become clear on the centre-back's fitness when Maresca speaks to the media later this week. Jorrel Hato could also be an option to come in but that will all come down to whether the head coach believes the Dutchman can play the role he wants in defence having not featured in the Premier League before.

Estevao Willian for Jamie Gittens/Pedro Neto

Estevao Willian caught the eye in the second half of the Crystal Palace draw after entering the fray not long after the restart. The Brazilian has wowed since his move to Stamford Bridge and he will be hoping that it leads to his first start very soon.

As Jamie Gittens didn't have that much of an impact on proceedings last week, the summer signing could possibly drop out to accommodate Estevao unless the boss decides to cut Pedro Neto. Even if he doesn't start, Estevao is still a great option for Maresca to have on his bench if needed.

Liam Delap for Joao Pedro

Liam Delap was also another to come off the bench in the closing stages as Chelsea chased a goal. The change unfortunately didn't have the desired effect as the Eagles remained strong to take a point back to Selhurst Park.

Maresca does have two good options to start up front in Joao Pedro and Delap, which in turn may see him switch things up for the visit to east London. Delap did in fact score on his last visit to the London Stadium as his former club Ipswich Town suffered a 4-1 defeat last October.