A draw for Andy Myers and team in their last league outing was a good return after a lengthy absence from competitive action, tonight the squad take on Derby to close the small gap at the top of the table. Here, we preview the game...

When and where

The action at the Loughborough University Stadium starts at 7pm. A full report will follow the final whistle.

Our form

Myers’ men made a return to PL2 football in last week’s London derby draw with Arsenal. Chelsea were pegged back on two occasions as Arsenal cancelled out goals from Thierno Ballo and Marcel Lewis to share a point at Meadow Park.

The opposition

Derby have had a mixed bag of results and some very eventful games of late. Their first win in six came last time out against Leicester City, with early goals from Dylan Williams and Cameron Cresswell were enough to seal the points as the Foxes couldn’t build on their 54th-minute opener.

Last meeting

The last meeting between the two teams produced a five-goal thriller which saw both sides end with 10 men at Cobham. An uneventful game was given life after Tino Anjorin’s strike on the hour, but a Derby double would have the Blues behind just four minutes later. Bryan Fiabema was introduced and found the net on two occasions, with the latter coming in injury time to steal the three points.

League standings

Elsewhere in the Academy

Under-18s defender Derrick Abu last week signed his first professional contract at Chelsea. The 17-year-old has made five appearances for Ed Brand's youth team and has now committed his future to the club.