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The Chelsea coach saw his team put up a spirited display against Liverpool and he is hoping to build onto that with a win against West Ham
On the back of respective 1-1 draws to kick off the 2023-24 Premier League season, West Ham United and Chelsea square off in Sunday afternoon's London derby at the London Stadium.
Both sides came from behind to salvage a point in their opening encounters, as David Moyes's side held Bournemouth while the Blues pegged Liverpool back at Stamford Bridge.
Preview
Beginning a new era without Declan Rice manning the midfield, West Ham also attempted to consign Manchester City's relentless pursuit of Lucas Paqueta to the back of their minds when they travelled south for their opening Premier League fixture of the new term against Bournemouth.
A 51st-minute Jarrod Bowen effort propelled the Europa Conference League winners into the ascendancy, but Bournemouth responded eight minutes from full time through Dominic Solanke, as West Ham escaped with a point despite enjoying just 37 percent of the ball at the Vitality Stadium.
West Ham have found the back of the net in all of their competitive home fixtures since a 2-0 loss to Brentford in December, allowing the Hammers faithful to enter the weekend with a moderate sense of optimism, especially with Chelsea now reeling from yet another injury to their skipper.
Off-field animosity preceded Chelsea's blockbuster meeting with Liverpool in the capital last weekend, as the Blues hijacked their Merseyside counterparts' British-record deal for Moises Caicedo before also convincing Romeo Lavia to snub Anfield for Stamford Bridge.
Including his quintet of friendly fixtures, Mauricio Pochettino is yet to lose since taking the reins at Chelsea, and his next goal is to reverse a worrying trend that has seen the Blues win just one of their last 13 top-flight matches, and none of their previous five.
Coincidentally, 1-1 was also the scoreline when West Ham and Chelsea did battle at the London Stadium back in February, prior to which the visitors beat the Irons twice in a row at Stamford Bridge, and there is now a new 19-year-old midfield protege ready to make his mark in blue.
Team news
West Ham's first home game of the season could also see maiden appearances for newly-signed midfield duo Edson Alvarez and James Ward-Prowse, the former of whom was not deemed fit enough to feature at the Vitality Stadium, while Ward-Prowse's arrival was confirmed on Monday.
In contrast, Chelsea's well-occupied medical room welcomed back regular member Reece James earlier this week, as the newly-appointed skipper - who came off against Liverpool due to fatigue - is set to spend at least a few weeks on the sidelines with a new hamstring injury.
James joins Trevoh Chalobah and Benoit Badiashile in the thigh injuries club, while Wesley Fofana, Armando Broja and Christopher Nkunku are all rehabilitating from knee problems, and Marcus Bettinelli.
When and where to watch
The match will kick off at 6.30pm Kenyan time and will be live on SuperSport TV.
Predicted lineups
West Ham United: Areola; Coufal, Zouma, Aguerd, Emerson; Alvarez, Ward-Prowse; Bowen, Paqueta, Benrahma; Antonio
Chelsea: Sanchez; Disasi, Silva, Colwill; Gusto, Fernandez, Caicedo, Chilwell; Gallagher, Sterling; Jackson
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