Chelsea resume their UEFA Conference League campaign on Thursday against Bundesliga side Heidenheim.
The Blues thrashed FC Noah 8-0 in their previous European game to make it three wins from three and put themselves in a strong position to qualify for the knockout phase in 2025.
They claimed a 2-1 Premier League win at Leicester City last Saturday and will be eager to build some momentum as they prepare to face Aston Villa and Tottenham in the early part of December.
Heidenheim have struggled in the German top flight in 2024/25. Their 5-2 defeat to champions Bayer Leverkusen last weekend left them in 15th place in the table, just two points above the bottom three, and they are on a run of just four wins in all competitions since September 1.
The Sporting News looks at the latest injury picture and predicted lineups for this fixture.
MORE: All the latest Chelsea news | Premier League schedule for 2024/25 | Latest Premier League top scorer rankings
Heidenheim vs. Chelsea lineups, predicted starting 11, team news
Heidenheim were 2-0 up after 21 minutes against Leverkusen only to collapse to defeat, so it will be interesting to see whether coach Frank Schmidt makes many significant changes.
One enforced absentee is top scorer Marvin Pieringer, who went off injured in that defeat — something Schmidt felt was a key factor behind his team's loss.
Defender Marnon Busch missed out last weekend through injury and is a doubt to face Chelsea. Midfielder Julian Niehues is a long-term absentee due to a serious knee injury.
Heidenheim predicted XI (4-3-1-2, right to left): Muller (GK) — Traore, Mainka, Gimber, Fohrenbach — Maloney, Schoppner, Beck — Dorsch — Wanner, Conteh
Injured: Busch, Niehues, Pieringer
Suspended: XX
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Chelsea captain Reece James suffered another hamstring issue prior to the Leicester game and is not likely to be rushed back for this one. Fellow right-back Malo Gusto should be involved after missing the win over the Foxes due to illness.
Pedro Neto could also return, while Levi Colwill will face fitness tests prior to the journey to Germany. Enzo Maresca will rotate the team heavily regardless given the short turnaround before Sunday's game against Aston Villa at Stamford Bridge.
Chelsea predicted XI (4-2-3-1, right to left): Jorgensen (GK) — Gusto, Adarabioyo, Badiashile, Veiga — Fernandez, Dewsbury-Hall — Neto, Joao Felix, Mudryk — Nkunku
Injured: James, Colwill (doubt)
Suspended: None
Ineligible: Palmer, Lavia
Heidenheim vs. Chelsea live stream, TV channel
Here's how to watch this UEFA Conference League match across selected areas of the world's major regions:
| Region | TV | Streaming |
| USA | — | Paramount+, ViX |
| Canada | — | DAZN |
| UK | TNT Sports 1 | discovery+ |
| Australia | — | Stan Sport |
| India | Sony Ten 2 | Sony LIV, JioTV |
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