Chelsea vs Lincoln head-to-head

The Blues have faced the Imps on eight occasions, with the last meeting between the two clubs taking place all the way back in 1911.

We are unbeaten at Sincil Bank in four meetings (two wins, two draws). Lincoln’s only victory against Chelsea was an FA Cup tie at Stamford Bridge 118 years ago in 1907.

Lincoln City will be the 71st different team Chelsea have faced in the League Cup.

LNER Stadium, previously known as Sincil Bank, has been the home of Lincoln City since 1895. It was Chelsea’s fifth away game in our first season (1905/06).

Our longest-serving manager, David Calderhead, joined after he managed Lincoln to an impressive FA Cup draw (and replay defeat) against us. He was Lincoln’s manager when we played them in our first season.

Calderhead was Chelsea’s manager for 26 years. He led the club between 1907 and 1933 and took charge of 966 matches.

Seven players have moved directly from Lincoln to Chelsea, the most recent being outside-right Fred Linfoot in 1920.

Head-to-head (all competitions)

Played 8
Won 5
Drawn 2
Lost 1

Chelsea stats

The last nine sides to face the Blues in the competition for the first time have all lost. The most recent to win their first meeting with Chelsea in the League Cup was Wimbledon in December 1998.

We have lost our last three away matches in the League Cup without scoring. The last time we lost more games in a row away in the competition was in 1989 (a run of five).

Since 2001, Chelsea have only failed to progress from the League Cup third round three times: 2005/06 when Charlton won on penalties after a 1-1 draw; 2010/11 when Newcastle won 4-3 at Stamford Bridge; 2022/23 when Manchester City beat us 2-0 at the Etihad Stadium.

The last time Chelsea played a League One side away in the League Cup was a third-round tie at Walsall in 2015/16. The Blues came away with a 4-1 victory thanks to goals from Ramires, Loic Remy, Kenedy and Pedro.

If the score in this week’s match is level after 90 minutes, the tie will be decided on penalties, as there is no extra time in this competition until the semi-final stage.

Chelsea won our last penalty shoot-out 4-2 against Newcastle United in the League Cup quarter-final in December 2023, having lost the previous two in 2022, in the League Cup and FA Cup finals.

Marc Guiu is cup-tied as he has played for Sunderland in the second round of this competition while he was on loan.

Lincoln stats

Last season

League One - 11th
FA Cup - Lost 2-1 away to Birmingham City in the third round
Carabao Cup - Lost 2-1 at home to Harrogate Town in the first round
EFL Trophy - Lost 1-0 at home to Bolton Wanderers in the last 16
Top scorer (all competitions): Jovon Makama 11
Top league scorer: James Collins 10

This season’s League One stats

Lincoln, coached by Michael Skubala, have made a good start to their League One campaign, with 18 points secured from their opening nine matches. They currently lie third, two points behind leaders Bradford City.

The Imps are unbeaten in their last seven league fixtures (four wins, three draws). The last time they were on such a run of form came between August 2024 and October 2024 (four wins, three draws).

In all competitions, Lincoln are unbeaten in 10 matches since Wimbledon defeated them on 9 August.

At home, they have not been beaten this season in six matches (four wins, two draws), last losing at Sincil Bank against Wrexham in May.

Their top scorer in all competitions this term is James Collins with five.

Collins scored the 200th and 201st Football League goals of his career against Wigan Athletic earlier this month, becoming only the third player to score 200-plus goals across the Championship, League One and League Two since the EFL rebrand of 2004. The others are Billy Sharp (254) and Jordan Rhodes (220).

Lincoln have reached the third round of the League Cup for the third time in four years. They are looking to reach the fourth round for the first time since 2022.

This will be Lincoln’s first match against a Premier League side since September 2023, when they lost 1-0 at home to West Ham United in the Carabao Cup third round.

Last five results

Mansfield (h) D 1-1
Notts County (EFL Trophy h) W 3-0
Wigan (h) D 2-2
Burton (a) W 1-0
Luton (h) W 3-1

Last line-up

Saturday 20 September

Lincoln City 3 Luton Town 1

Team (4-4-2-): Wickens, Darikwa (c), Jackson, Bradley, Reach; Street (Hamer 66), McGrandles, Bayliss (Varfolomieiev 90+7), House (Ring 90+7), Draper (Okoronkwo 79), Collins (Obikwu 80)

Discipline

Robert Sanchez is suspended (one match) following his red card at Old Trafford.

Yellow cards only count in the competition they are received. In the Carabao Cup, two bookings will result in a one-match suspension.

Match officials

Referee: Matt Donohue
Assistants: Matthew Smith, Jacob Graham
Fourth official: David Rock