Graham Potter faces the unenviable task of facing Manchester City at the Etihad, add in that the World Cup break is less than two weeks away, there are a host of injuries to navigate and manage, the Blues are winless in four games domestically and have lost two in a row and it's easy to understand why things are looking bleak.
Chelsea fell to a weak 1-0 defeat against Arsenal at Stamford Bridge but were without six first team stars in their starting XI and Potter will no doubt be keen to give others a rest in the Carabao Cup. Thomas Tuchel led them to the final last year but lost out on penalties against Liverpool.
With a big top four battle against Newcastle on Saturday this match is all of a sudden a distraction and hinderance in the build-up to more important domestic action and it wouldn't be a surprise to see several youth players given first team action.
