Chelsea will return to EFL Cup action on Tuesday evening as they welcome Newcastle United to Stamford Bridge for an all Premier League clash.
The Blues beat Blackburn Rovers in the round of 16, while the Magpies outclassed Manchester United to make it thus far.
Match Preview
Chelsea will enter the game on the back of an encouraging 2-0 success over Sheffield United on Saturday.
The Blues dominated possession and created several goal scoring opportunities. But it took them until the 54th-minute to break the deadlock, with Cole Palmer firing the ball into the net.
The former Manchester City player then turned provider as he set up Nicolas Jackson for the second goal of the match.
The victory will likely have restored some confidence in the Chelsea camp following the humiliating defeats at the hands of Manchester United and Everton.
Mauricio Pochettino’s side are currently sitting 10th in the Premier League table, with 22 points from their opening 17 matches.
They will now focus their attention on the EFL Cup, a competition they haven’t won since 2015.
The West Londoners comfortably defeated Blackburn Rovers 2-0 last month after goals from Benoit Badiashile and Raheem Sterling in either half.
They will now come up against Newcastle United in a tough Carabao Cup contest.
The Tyneside club took their revenge against Manchester United in the previous round, beating their rivals comfortably by 3-0.
Goals from Miguel Almiron and Lewis Hall in the first-half put the visitors in a commanding position.
Then, Joe Willock added another as they sealed a comfortable victory at Old Trafford.
Eddie’s men didn’t have more of the ball but they created better chances and were also very clinical.
Newcastle haven’t been very convincing in recent weeks as they ended their Champions League campaign in a shambolic manner.
They lost their final European group match to AC Milan 2-1, thus ending at the bottom and being denied even the consolation of a place in the Europa League.
Team News
Chlesea are dealing with a lot of injury woes this week. The long list of absentees due to fitness problems include Wesley Fofana, Carney Chukwuemeka, Trevoh CHalobah, Lesley Ugochukwu, Ben Chilwell, Reece James, Marc Cucurella, Romeo Lavia and Robert Sanchez.
Meanwhile, Newcastle’s injury issues are also huge, with Sandro Tonali, Nick Pope, Matt Targett, Elliot Anderson, Javi Manquillo, JOe Willock and Harvey Barnes all sidelined.
Chelsea vs Newcastle United potential line-ups
Chelsea: Petrovic; Gusto, Disasi, Badiashile, Maatsen; Caicedo, Fernandez; Sterling, Gallagher, Palmer; Broja
Newcastle United: Dubravka; Krafth, Lascelles, Botman, Burn; Miley, Guimaraes, Longstaff; Ritchie, Wilson, Almiron
Chelsea vs Newcastle United prediction
Neither side have been very convincing with their performances recently. But we are backing Chelsea to come out on top this weekend due to their home advantage.
Chelsea 2-1 Newcastle United
