Frank Lampard will return to Stamford Bridge for the first time as a manager on Wednesday night when his Derby County side take on Chelsea in the EFL Cup fourth round.
The Rams are looking to pull off another upset after beating Manchester United in the last round, whereas Chelsea are bidding to continue an impressive unbeaten run under new boss Maurizio Sarri.
Chelsea
© Reuters
The pre-match focus is inevitably going to surround club legend Frank Lampard, but the current crop of Chelsea players are bidding to create their own history under Sarri.
It is a very different Chelsea to the one which Lampard left at the end of the 2013-14 season, with only David Luiz, Gary Cahill, Cesar Azpilicueta, Eden Hazard and Willian still at the club from the time of his departure.
Indeed, it is a very different Chelsea to the one we saw last season too, with Sarri having hit the ground running and getting his side playing the style of football he wants quickly.
It is a style which the players are enjoying and - more importantly - which is producing results; Chelsea are unbeaten in 14 matches across all competitions since losing the Community Shield to Manchester City, winning 11 of those and drawing just three.
The Blues are already five points better off than at the same stage of last season, with Sunday's emphatic 4-0 win over Burnley at Turf Moor lifting them above Manchester City into second place ahead of the champions' visit to Tottenham Hotspur on Monday evening.
While they missed out on a Champions League spot last season, Chelsea appear to have established themselves as genuine title contenders this term and are still unbeaten after the opening 10 games of a Premier League campaign for only the third time - the previous two occasions have both seen them go on to lift the trophy.
It is a different piece of silverware which Sarri will be focusing on on Wednesday, though, as Chelsea look to continue their charge on all fronts having already dispatched of Premier League rivals Liverpool in this season's competition.
The five-time League Cup winners were handed one of the toughest draws of the third round when they were forced to visit Anfield, but late goals from Emerson Palmieri and Hazard - the latter of which was a brilliant solo effort - saw Sarri's side come from a goal down to inflict Liverpool's first defeat of the season last month.
Hazard's stunning start to the campaign has since been slowed by a back injury, but Chelsea have proven that they can cope without their star man and are currently enjoying their longest unbeaten streak since May 2015.
It is 11 matches since Chelsea last lost at home too, including five wins from seven matches at Stamford Bridge so far this season - most recently beating BATE Borisov 3-1 in the Europa League last Thursday.
Ruben Loftus-Cheek scored a hat-trick in that game and was on the scoresheet again at the weekend, and the England international could be one of a number of changes made by Sarri as he looks to keep his squad fresh.
Recent EFL Cup form: W
Recent form (all competitions): DWWDWW
Derby
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The EFL Cup is a competition Lampard won twice as a player with Chelsea, and it has provided him with a couple of dream ties already in his fledgling managerial career too.
After easing to victories away to Oldham Athletic and Hull City in the opening two rounds, Lampard was drawn against his former manager and mentor Jose Mourinho for the first time since his switch to management in the third round.
Not many people gave Derby a chance despite Manchester United's clear struggles at the time, but Lampard got one over on Mourinho with a memorable penalty shootout victory at Old Trafford - a shootout United had only rescued in the first place courtesy of a 95th-minute equaliser.
It is surely the high point of Lampard's career in the dugout so far, but this return to Stamford Bridge has the potential to rival it and few people know the place better as he looks to mastermind another giant-killing from his Championship outfit.
Lampard made 611 appearances for Chelsea from 2001 to 2014, scoring a club-record 211 goals and helping them to 13 trophies - including three Premier League titles, four FA Cups, the Champions League and the Europa League.
Lampard won everything there is to win in English football while at Stamford Bridge, but the targets are different now as he bids to finally end Derby's wait for a return to the top flight after a string of near misses.
The Rams currently looked well-placed to challenge for that goal; after 15 games of the season they sit in sixth, just two points adrift of the automatic promotion places and four points off leaders Sheffield United.
Derby arrive at Stamford Bridge enjoying their longest unbeaten spell under Lampard too, although three of their five games without defeat have ended in draws and across all competitions they have won just three of their last 10 outings inside normal time.
Away from home it is just one win from their last six games inside 90 minutes, although that does not include the penalty shootout victory over United in the previous round of this competition.
One concern for Lampard may be that his side have only kept two clean sheets in their last 15 matches on the road, although both of those have come in the EFL Cup this season.
Recent EFL Cup form: WWW
Recent form (all competitions): LDDWWD
Team News
© Reuters
Hazard has not featured since picking up a back injury against Manchester United earlier this month, and the Belgian is unlikely to be risked for an EFL Cup game with doubts still lingering over his fitness.
Pedro has been his replacement in the past two games, but he lasted just half an hour against Burnley at the weekend before being taken off due to stomach pains.
Fringe players such as Loftus-Cheek, Victor Moses, Cesc Fabregas and Andreas Christensen will hope to get a chance to impress from the start, with Sarri expected to make wholesale changes to his side for this match.
There will also be Chelsea players hoping to impress on the opposite side too, with the club having given loanee youngsters Mason Mount and Fikayo Tomori special permission to play against their parent club on Wednesday.
Derby are expected to name a strong side in an attempt to pull off another upset, and there could be a start for Jack Marriott up front after he came off the bench to score against United in the previous round.
Chelsea possible starting lineup:
Caballero; Zappacosta, Cahill, Christensen, Emerson; Loftus-Cheek, Fabregas, Kovacic; Moses, Giroud, Hudson-Odoi
Derby possible starting lineup:
Carson; Bogle, Keogh, Tomori, Forsyth; Huddlestone, Johnson; Bennett, Mount, Wilson; Marriott
Head To Head
Chelsea are unbeaten in the nine meetings between these two sides since the turn of the century, winning eight of those including each of the last five.
The most recent clash came in December 2014 when Chelsea ran out 3-1 winners over Derby at Pride Park in the fifth round of this very same competition - with Hazard among those on the scoresheet for Chelsea and Craig Bryson scoring for Derby.
Derby have not won at Stamford Bridge since a Second Division clash in February 1983, with Chelsea winning 10 of their 11 meetings at the stadium since.
We say: Chelsea 2-0 Derby
Derby pulled off a huge upset against Manchester United in the last round, and the headline-writers will hope for another Lampard-inspired giant-killing against his former club. However, United were a side in poor form at the time whereas Chelsea are flying under Sarri and should seal their progress quite comfortably against their Championship opponents.
Barney Corkhill
