TEAM NEWS
Southampton will assess the fitness of striker Dani Osvaldo, who missed the defeat at Everton because of illness.
Midfielder Morgan Schneiderlin returns following a one-game suspension.
Chelsea midfielder Ramires is available after a one-match ban and could replace David Luiz, who is suspended after amassing five yellow cards.
The Blues are also without Frank Lampard and Branislav Ivanovic, both of whom were substituted against Liverpool on Sunday after suffering injuries.
MATCH PREVIEW
Chelsea lost 2-1 here last season and it is the sort of venue where they could easily come unstuck again, but there's a renewed tactical discipline and focus about Jose Mourinho's team in recent weeks.
They've won three of their past four games in the league since losing at Stoke early in December, when an utterly dominant opening 40 minutes descended into an unlikely 3-2 defeat.
They have tightened things up since then. Mourinho is many things, but a gung-ho, "we'll score one more than you" type of manager isn't one of them.
Clearly Chelsea have the players to be flamboyant and the win over Liverpool on Sunday was excellent, but they're showing they can grind out results too.
Overall, it's one defeat in the past nine league games, which leaves them ominously well placed at the halfway mark in third place, just a couple of points off the top.
There should be more to come from the attacking players too. Swansea at home on Boxing Day was a case in point.
First-half dominance led to just one goal and, rather than putting the game beyond reach, Chelsea were left hanging on a bit with Swansea increasingly fancying their chances of a late equaliser.
The last time I was at Southampton, Mauricio Pochettino told me his team had basically put on Santa outfits and handed out early presents to Tottenham in losing 3-2 just before Christmas.
You could see his point after an excellent start that produced an early lead had been undermined by defensive errors.
It's been a frustrating period of the season that has seen them win only one of the past eight in the Premier League, while losing five.
Their recent run has seen them drop from third to ninth, but they looked more like their old selves in dismantling Cardiff away on Boxing Day and they gave high-flying Everton a good game on Sunday in a narrow 2-1 defeat.
MATCH FACTS
Head-to-head
Chelsea have won six of their past eight league and cup games against Southampton (D1, L1).
Their sole defeat was the 2-1 loss at the St Mary's Stadium on 30 March 2013.
Southampton
Saints have lost five of their past eight league games (W1, D2).
They kept six clean sheets in their first nine top-flight matches, but have recorded just one shut-out in the subsequent 10 games.
If Saints lose it will be the first time they have suffered back-to-back home league defeats under Mauricio Pochettino.
Rickie Lambert is one shy of 100 league goals for Southampton.
Chelsea
Chelsea have won four of the seven league games in which they have conceded the opening goal this season, collecting a total of 13 points - the best record in the top flight.
The Blues have conceded 37% of their league goals from set pieces - the highest ratio in the Premier League.
Eden Hazard's tally of eight league goals is greater than the combined total of Samuel Eto'o (3), Fernando Torres (2) and Demba Ba (1).
No striker scored an away league goal for Chelsea in 2013. Fernando Torres was the last centre-forward to net on the road for the Blues, doing so in a 3-1 win at Sunderland on 8 December 2012.
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