Chelsea v Malmo predictions, free Champions League tips and analysis

Free football tips, best bets and analysis for Chelsea v Malmo in the Champions League on Wednesday.

Where to watch

BT Sport 3, 8pm Wednesday

Best bet

Timo Werner to score first
0.5pt each-way 9-2 bet365

Team news

Chelsea
Antonio Rudiger has been passed fit after a back injury, but Christian Pulisic is out. Thiago Silva may start after his late return from international duty.

Malmo
Anel Ahmedhodzic is suspended after his sending off against Zenit, while Oscar Lewicki, Ola Toivonen, Jonas Knudsen and Felix Beijmo are all injured.

Match preview

European champions Chelsea are playing catch-up in the race to top Group H after their defeat at Juventus in Turin on matchday two left them three points adrift of the Serie A powerhouses but the Blues should have few problems getting back to winning ways at Stamford Bridge on Wednesday.

Chelsea were comfortable victors over Zenit in their group opener and their next group opponents, Malmo, have shown little in two defeats so far.

The Swedish champions have endured a tough reacquaintance with the competition on their first foray into the group stage since 2015-16. They were soundly beaten 3-0 at home to Juve in their opener before suffering a 4-0 hiding at Zenit.

Jon Dahl Tomasson’s men did beat Scottish champions Rangers home and away in qualifying but have found the step up in quality difficult to handle.

To add to their European troubles, Malmo are currently locked in a fierce tussle to retain their domestic title. With just seven games of the season remaining, they are one of three teams level on points at the top of the Allsvenskan table.

With that in mind, Malmo could probably do without a trip to Stamford Bridge. Their two visits to England since 2013 have resulted in a 4-0 defeat at Swansea in Europa League qualifying and a 3-0 loss at Chelsea in the last 16 of that competition in 2019 - part of a 5-1 aggregate defeat.

A comfortable Chelsea victory seems likely, but hasn't been missed by the layers.

Thomas Tuchel’s Blues remain top of the Premier League but they were incredibly fortunate to edge out Brentford on Saturday as goalkeeper Edouard Mendy came to their rescue on numerous occasions.

The Senegalese stopper is unlikely to be anywhere near as busy against Malmo and Tuchel may look at this tie as an opportunity to shuffle the pack with an early kick-off against Norwich on Saturday and an EFL Cup tie next Tuesday night to come.

Romelu Lukaku has rarely missed a minute since returning to Stamford Bridge and the Belgian may be one player Tuchel decides to give a rest to. As a result, Timo Werner may be tasked with bearing more of the striking load.

The German has scored just one league goal this campaign, but netted the Blues’ only goal in their EFL Cup tie with Aston Villa and has scored five times in five games for his national team this season.

At the prices, Werner could prove a shrewd investment to open the scoring at the Bridge.

Key stat

Malmo have lost their last three matches in England by a combined 8-0 scoreline.

Inside info

Chelsea

Penalty taker Jorginho
Free-kick wizard Marcus Alonso
Set-piece aerial threat Thiago Silva
Card magnet Marcus Alonso

Malmo

Penalty taker Anders Christiansen
Free-kick wizardAnders Christiansen
Set-piece aerial threatAntonio Colak
Card magnetBonke Innocent

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