Chelsea travels to Old Trafford after tumultuous week

Manchester, England (Sports Network) - It will be strange to see a new man leading Chelsea into Old Trafford on Sunday after former boss Jose Mourinho stepped down early Thursday morning in a stunning move.

After waging so many great wars with Sir Alex Ferguson and Manchester United during his three years in London, Mourinho will be far away from this crucial contest, with new Chelsea boss Avram Grant taking charge.

Grant has his hands full with a Chelsea team that is a little rattled after such a rough few weeks.

After winning three of its first four games in Premiership play, the Blues have gone 0-1-1 in their last two games, a loss at Aston Villa and a scoreless draw at home against Blackburn.

A poor performance on Tuesday in the Champions League resulted in a 1-1 draw with Norwegian club Rosenborg on home soil, which prompted the meeting between Mourinho and Chelsea officials.

With the Portuguese manager gone, it will be interesting to see if Chelsea can maintain its swagger and keep up with the rest of the EPL's top teams.

Mourinho brought unrivaled success to Chelsea in his time there, and how the team reacts to his departure, as well as a number of injury concerns, will determine its level of success in the coming year.

Chelsea battled injuries throughout the season last year, but already faces the prospect of meeting United on Sunday without Frank Lampard and Didier Drogba.

Midfielder Michael Ballack has yet to play a game for Chelsea this season, and striker Andriy Shevchenko recently returned from an injury himself.

Don't expect United to feel sorry for Chelsea because the Red Devils have issues of their own.

"I wish Jose well, but that's as far as I want to put it," Ferguson told the club's website about Mourinho's departure. "What happens at Chelsea doesn't matter to us, we've got to focus on our game because it's still the same set of players that we will be facing. And that's a challenge enough for us."

Another thing that has been a challenge for United this season is scoring goals. Ferguson's men have yet to score more then one goal in any game this season, but have still managed to stay afloat in the Premiership thanks to a defense that has recorded four clean sheets in six games.

After starting the season with a 0-1-2 record, United has rallied to win three straight games by a 1-0 score. While the games have not been pretty, the results have put United in the top four in the standings, and the team has yet to come close to playing its best soccer.

Injuries to strikers Wayne Rooney and Louis Saha forced Carlos Tevez into action earlier than expected. The three-game suspension that Cristiano Ronaldo received stemming from an incident against Portsmouth in the team's second game further robbed Ferguson of scoring options.

However, the team has weathered the storm, and in the club's 1-0 win at Sporting Lisbon in Champions League play on Wednesday had Rooney, Ronaldo and Saha all back in the lineup.

Rooney had little impact in his first game back, and Saha did not fair much better in a substitute role, but Ronaldo was in fine form, scoring the team's lone goal and setting up a number of scoring chances.

This is as healthy as United has been all year, with midfielder Owen Hargreaves and defender Gary Neville as the lone absentees because of thigh injuries. Ferguson expects both players to return to the lineup within the next week.

Sunday's game will not be the deciding factor in who wins the EPL title this season. Rather, it will serve as more of a survival game, with the loser being dropped further into a hole and the winner remaining among the top teams.

United is trying to keep its momentum going in hopes of returning to the top of the standings, while Chelsea is attempting to rebound from a terrible week to get its season back on track.

In action on Saturday, league-leaders Arsenal host a Derby team that is coming off of its first win of the season last time out, a 1-0 triumph against Newcastle. Liverpool entertains another promoted club in Birmingham, Middlesbrough and Sunderland tussle at The Riverside Stadium, Reading tries to snap a three-game losing skid in league play when it meets Wigan, and Manchester City, currently second in the table, visits Fulham.

In Sunday's other EPL contests, Newcastle, coming off of its first loss of the season, hosts West Ham, while Everton looks to stay in the top half of the standings with a win at Aston Villa. Blackburn has yet to taste defeat this season, and comes off a 0-0 draw with Chelsea. Rovers try to keep that unblemished mark when Portsmouth comes to town, and disappointing sides Bolton and Tottenham tangle at the Reebok Stadium.

09/21 11:00:45 ET