CHELSEA hop from one cup competition to the next as they prepare to do battle with Championship side Middlesbrough in their Carabao Cup semi-final first leg.
Goals from Armando Borja, Thiago Silva, Raheem Sterling and Enzo Fernandez saw the Blues comfortably cruise past Preston in the third round of the FA Cup on Saturday.
And Mauricio Pochettino’s men will be expected to pull off a similar result against a Middlesbrough side who were beaten at home by high-flying Aston Villa on the same night.
However, its never a foregone conclusion in football, especially when it comes to a cup tie plus Chelsea’s inconsistency this season will give the Born a glimmer of hope.
But the Championship have lost NINE consecutive matches against the Blues with the most recent encounter happening as recent as 2022.
When is Middlesbrough vs Chelsea
- Chelsea’s Carabao Cup semi-final first leg against Middlesbrough will take place on Tuesday, January 9.
- It is scheduled to get underway at 8pm GMT.
- Riverside Stadium is the allocated arena for this exciting fixture and it can host approximately 34,742 fans.
- Romelu Lukaku and Hakim Ziyech sent Middlesbrough crashing out of the FA Cup when the sides last met in a quarter-final tie.
Read more on Chelsea
What TV channel is it on and can it be live streamed?
- Middlesbrough vs Chelsea will be broadcast LIVE on Sky Sports Main Event and Sky Sports Football in the UK
- Coverage is expected to commence from 7pm GMT on both channels – a whole hour before kick-off.
- Fans have the option to stream the entire action through NOW TV.
- Alternatively, follow SunSport’s live blog for minute-by-minute coverage of the match.
What is the team news?
Middlesbrough manager Michael Carrick would have been distraught with the Aston Villa result.
But the Boro boss got to finally see the return of Hayden Hackney and Emmanuel Latte Lath in the FA Cup third round tie, while Matt Crooks was an unused substitute.
Elsewhere, Mauricio Pochettino delivered some damning news that Christopher Nkunku has suffered a hip injury shortly after returning from his long-term knee issue.
Most read in Football
And the Frenchman is expected to be sidelined along with Wesley Fofana (knee), Trevor Chalobah (thigh), Reece James (hamstring), Robert Sanchez (knee), Marc Cucurella (ankle) and Romeo Lavia (thigh).
However, the Chelsea boss was optimistic about Benoit Badiashile returning from his muscular injury for the first leg, while Ben Chilwell who has been out with a hamstring problem and Carney Chukwuemeka who has a knee issue have been training.
But Nicolas Jackson will certainly not play as he is away on international duty with Senegal at AFCON.
What are the latest odds?
- Middlesbrough to win 9/2
- Draw 16/5
- Chelsea to win 4/7
*Odds courtesy of Ladbrokes are correct at time of publication
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
