Chelsea get their EFL Cup campaign underway on Wednesday evening when they travel to the Etihad Stadium to face Manchester City.
The Pensioners suffered defeat in the EFL final last year, losing 10-11 on penalties to Liverpool following a goalless draw after extra time. They will be keen to go one step further and claim the domestic cup this time around.
The Blues come into the midweek cup tie off the back of successive Premier League defeats to Brighton and Arsenal, respectively, which has seen Graham Potter’s side drop into seventh in the table. As a result, Potter will be desperate to get back to winning ways.
Chelsea Team News
Ben Chilwell suffered a hamstring injury against Dinamo Zagreb in the Champions League last week, which will rule him out of the World Cup.
N’Golo Kante and Wesley Fofana are out until after the World Cup, while Reece James continues his rehab on a knee problem as he faces a race against time to make the England squad for the World Cup. Kepa has joined them on the sidelines following a foot problem, with Carney Chukwuemeka a doubt following a hamstring problem.
Predicted Chelsea Lineup vs Man City (4-3-2-1)
Goalkeeper
With Kepa out until after the World Cup with a foot injury, Edouard Mendy is a sure-shot starter in goal for in the Chelsea lineup. When called upon, the Senegalese will need to be alert in between the sticks.
Defence
Graham Potter could rotate his squad in midweek and hand some of the fringe players an opportunity to get some valuable game time. He may opt to tweak the 4-2-3-1 formation deployed against Arsenal to 4-3-2-1 at the Etihad Stadium, with Kalidou Koulibaly in line to replace Thiago Silva at the back in the Chelsea lineup.
Due to a lack of defensive options, Koulibaly is likely to join Trevoh Chalobah in central defence, with Marc Cucurella and Cesar Azpilicueta holding their places at full-back in the Chelsea lineup.
Midfield
Mateo Kovacic was fit enough to start on the bench against Arsenal as he manages his calf injury, but the Croatian international could be a part of the heavily rotated midfield alongside Denis Zakaria and Conor Gallagher.
The trio of Kovacic, Zakaria and Gallagher should function well as a unit to stop a well-oiled Man City team from getting through Chelsea’s midfield.
Teenager Lewis Hall could be granted some minutes in the second half if Chelsea find themselves in a good position against City.
Attack
Raheem Sterling, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Mason Mount look set to drop to the bench, with Potter possibly opting to use Hakim Ziyech, Christian Pulisic and Armando Broja as Chelsea’s front three.
With Broja leading the line, Pulisic and Ziyech will be tasked with supplying deliveries in the box for the Albanian international to attack.
If Chelsea are in need of a goal or two, the likes of Sterling, Havertz and Aubameyang could be brought on off the bench.