PRE-MATCH BRIEFING: CHELSEA V WOLVERHAMPTON WANDERERS - PART TWO
With the hours ticking down towards the start of this season's Capital One Cup campaign, club historian Rick Glanvill and club statistician Paul Dutton continue their preview…
TACTICAL BRIEF
Charlton in 2005 are the only lower league club to have overcome Chelsea at this stage of the competition since Huddersfield in 1999. Can the Blues make the fourth round for the sixth time in seven years?
Roberto Di Matteo is certain to make changes to the side that started the patient 1-0 win over Stoke on Saturday, from which John Terry and Frank Lampard were omitted.
He knows in most areas he has plenty of talent desperate to play, much of it hailing from the Academy ranks. Regular Under-21 players left out of last night's line-up at Selhurst Park might be in with a chance of some involvement this evening. (The U21s do play again on Friday, however.) So will Lucas Piazon (pictured below) have a run out tonight?
Other younger players are unavailable with Nathaniel Chalobah on loan to Watford and John Swift away with England at the UEFA European U19 Championship in Estonia.
Daniel Sturridge would be likely to figure were it not for the hamstring injury he sustained last week which makes him a doubt. That could mean we see more of the exciting Victor Moses than his bright cameos against QPR and Stoke.
Di Matteo may well also decide that the acclimatisation of Spain right-back Cesar Azpilicueta, a non-playing substitute for the games against QPR, Juventus and Stoke, should continue in the first team.
German winger Marko Marin, who sparkled before succumbing to injury in pre-season matches, has endured a frustrating start to his career at the Bridge and has seen some reserve action and may have his chance tonight.
The Italian boss has occasionally switched his system from 4-2-3-1 to a 4-3-3 and may experiment with more tweaks tonight as his new squad continues to bed in nicely.
His predecessor Mick McCarthy was unrepentant about fielding weakened sides in this competition, and Ståle Solbakken has promised wholesale changes tonight. This has nothing to do with the fact his father, Svein, is a fanatical Chelsea supporter.
Many of his players have played three league matches in seven days and climbing out of the Championship is his club's number one priority.
He has suggested that Bjorn Sigurdarson and Razak Boukari may step in for Kevin Doyle or Sylvan Ebanks-Blake upfront, while David Davis in midfield and defenders Georg Margreitter and Danny Batth may be involved.
The enduring bête noir of Blues fans, former Reading winger Stephen Hunt, may start this evening, with Dorus De Vries stepping for Carl Ikeme in goal. Chelsea also welcome back our former Academy striker Frank Nouble.
Solbakken's side has earned victories without always impressing as he attempts to forge a 'new Wolves' based on the old ethics of industry and spirit. They managed to retain some of their players despite the financial adjustment needed after relegation.
The Norwegian has also largely stuck with his preferred 4-4-2/4-4-1-1 formation and that places extra pressure on the midfield, with gaps appearing that Chelsea's extra numbers should be well equipped to exploit.
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