Chelsea vs Hull City match
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The gist
Chelsea host Hull City at Stamford Bridge on Saturday, with Hull third and yet to concede.
Fourth-placed Chelsea want to close the gap on the league's surprise unbeaten side.
Background
Hull City are back in the Premier League after a decade away, promoted via the Championship play-offs in May 2026, and have started as the season's surprise package: two wins and a draw, third in the table, and no league goals conceded yet. Chelsea, in Xabi Alonso's first Premier League campaign, sit fourth on six points after wins over Fulham and Brighton and a 2-1 loss at Arsenal. Chelsea have scored eight league goals so far, joint-most with Brighton, making this a clash of the league's best attack against its meanest defence.
How it unfolded
- May 23, 2026Hull City win the Championship play-off final at Wembley to return to the Premier League after a decade away.
- Aug 22, 2026Hull beat Manchester United 2-0 in the league, their standout result of the opening weeks.
- recentlyHull draw 0-0 with Aston Villa in the league, then lose 1-0 at Sunderland in the Carabao Cup — their first defeat of the season.
- recentlyChelsea beat Leeds 6-3 in the Carabao Cup after a 2-1 league loss at Arsenal ended their winning start.
- Sep 12, 2026Chelsea host Hull City at Stamford Bridge in game week four, kicking off 3:00 p.m. BST.
Who’s saying what
- Analysts
- Multiple previews predict a Chelsea win, with USA Today and NBC Sports both forecasting Chelsea 3-1, arguing Hull's perfect defensive record ends at Stamford Bridge.
- Caution
- NBC Sports notes Hull will defend deep and be tough to break down, but warns an early Chelsea goal would wreck their game plan.
- Expert
- SI credits Hull boss Sergej Jakirović, the reigning Premier League Manager of the Month, as a canny operator who will make Chelsea break his resilient side down.