Boro have traditionally not enjoyed their visits to the Bridge. Chelsea club historian Rick Glanvill and club statistician Paul Dutton assess Chelsea's chances of continuing the misery.Rick spots opponents who have been no pushovers on the road this season.
After last week's dramatic rally against the Gunners, the odds on Avram Grant and his side scooping the Premier League are shorter than namesake Chelsea Harbour winning the Grand National on 5 April.
At this stage of the season, what title-chasers like is to face opposition like Aintree no-hoper Always Waining - someone with nothing to play for. Unfortunately Boro, who according to the table should be your classic mid-table, towels-already-on-the-beach fodder, will be no pushover come Sunday lunchtime.
Before Chelsea's eclipsing of Fabregas and co last weekend Boro were the sole side to beat the Gunners, 2-1 in mid-December. And for more than an hour in the recent return fixture at the Emirates, until Toure's late equaliser, former Arsenal youngster Jeremie Aliadière's goal kept Boro ahead of the then leaders. That was the Frenchman's third goal in six league games.
A week earlier Stewart Downing scored early and earned an equally creditable draw at Villa, and Boro pushed Liverpool all the way at Anfield in a 2-3 defeat a month ago.
Last weekend it was Aliadière's strike partner Tuncay Sanli who scored the winner against Derby, in terrible weather conditions. As one observer put it, the game meant 'the side with the third worst goalscoring record in the Premier League beat the side with the worst goalscoring record'.
But Boro's maligned attack has done enough to secure important points and secure their top-flight status. The excellent understanding between Aliadière and Tuncay has been one of the reasons January's record-signing Afonso Alves has yet to open his account. The £12m Brazilian has only started one league game to date.
There are signs that other areas are functioning better now under Gareth Southgate than during Boro's difficult first few months of the season. Back in October Didier Drogba opened the scoring after eight minutes and Chelsea were rarely threatened before Alex's memorable long-range strike as the hour approached. Drogba, by the way, has scored seven goals in his last nine Premier League matches, stretching back to that match.
Tall, powerful England Under-21 defender David Wheater's rise under the tutelage of former national team centre-back is no real surprise, and he won a call-up to Fabio Capello's initial 30-man senior squad as further reward after signing a new three-year deal at the Riverside in February.
Robert Huth, plagued by injury since he waved goodbye to the Chelsea crowd as a buggy-driving title-winner, has been playing regularly recently and scored a vital late equaliser in the northeast at St James' Park last month. He may have recovered from an ankle injury in time to make a welcome return this weekend.
Sanli's goal against Derby was set-up by George Boateng, who always seems to find an extra gear - or stud, or elbow - against Chelsea. If Boro line up in the same way they did so successfully at the Emirates, Boateng will again be a key figure.
Against Arsène Wenger's 'near to perfection' team, Boateng and his right-sided midfield colleague Gary O'Neil, along with the feisty Wheater and Huth, knew that one slight spanner in their opponents' over-complicated machine, and the whole production line halted. Wiry Egyptian Mohammed Shawky has impressed too, and may retain his place alongside Boateng over Lee Cattermole.
Given that Chelsea's play lacks the over-elaboration of Arsenal's and that Mido and Fabio Rochemback are suspended, Southgate may change formation from 4-4-2 to the 4-5-1 he has used with mixed results in the past, attempting to thwart Chelsea's powerful midfield.
He will also be expecting England wideman Downing and O'Neil to deliver crosses to exploit Chelsea's unexpected vulnerability in the box recently.
However they line up this will be a battle. Gareth Southgate's side have an away record this season that is superior to that of Spurs and equal to Man City's. They have only scored four goals fewer than Liverpool on their travels.
Yet Boro have a daunting record at Stamford Bridge to overturn in this match. They haven't scored at the Bridge since September 2001 and it is 33 years since they last left the Fulham Road with all the points. That day in 1975, Jack Charlton's high-rollers had new signing Terry Copper dismissed by referee Ted Jolly early in the second half. Jolly good job too, because it might have been five or six had he not, rather than 2-1.
Rampant Boro also had two goals disallowed, and controlled the match even after Chelsea's goal - left-back John Sparrow's first for the club, a header from a Charlie Cooke cross - made it appear a close game. Chelsea were four points from safety that day, hesitant and lacking confidence. Come May the Blues were relegated for the first time in 13 years.
That was Boro's first win at the Bridge for ten years, so they have clearly never fancied the West End very much. Arsenal will empathise with that as they travel up to the traditional graveyard of their vanities, Bolton, on Saturday for a 3pm kick-off. Manchester United will know the result of that game before they kick off at home against unpredictable Aston Villa that evening.
CHELSEA V MIDDLESBROUGH - Paul Dutton number crunches ahead of the visit by Gareth Southgate's team.
Chelsea are hoping to extend our unbeaten run against Middlesbrough at Stamford Bridge to 19 games in 33 years including an amazing 14 clean sheets.
More @ www.chelseafc.com
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