Carling Cup quarter-final
- Venue: Stamford Bridge
- Date: Tuesday, 29 November
- Kick-off: 1945 GMT
- Coverage: Watch highlights on The League Cup Show; listen on BBC Radio 5 live and BBC local radio; text commentary on the BBC Sport website
Live text and stats
Tuesday, 29 November 2011
Carling Cup
| Home Team | Score | Away Team | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chelsea | v | Liverpool | 19:45 |
TEAM NEWS
Chelsea's John Terry is suspended as he picked up his fifth booking of the season on Saturday.
Fernando Torres should start against his former club, but another former Red, Raul Meireles, is cup-tied.
Liverpool's Craig Bellamy will return after missing the match with Manchester City on compassionate grounds following the death of Gary Speed.
Jamie Carragher is expected to come into the side and Andy Carroll will also be promoted from the bench.
MATCH PREVIEW
Chelsea and Liverpool lock horns again a mere 10 days since the Reds landed a knockout blow on the Blues in the league at Stamford Bridge.
Chelsea midfielder Juan Mata'It's never easy to have such negative results, but we all have a lot of faith in ourselves as a team. We have a lot of faith in our coach and in the quality of the squad
Despite Saturday's win over Wolves, Chelsea manager Andre Villas-Boas remains firmly on the ropes and another defeat to Liverpool will have Roman Abramovich's notoriously itchy trigger finger edging closer towards the panic button.
This is the 30th time the sides have met since 2004. One of those early encounters saw a young Portuguese manager get his first taste of silverware for the Blues as a certain Jose Mourinho masterminded a victory over Liverpool in the 2005 League Cup final. What Villas-Boas would give to repeat the exploits of his mentor come February.
First, though, Liverpool must be despatched. Considering Kenny Dalglish has not lost in 12 previous matches against Chelsea as Liverpool manager, and that the Reds have lost on just one of their last six visits to Stamford Bridge, it is not going to be easy.
MATCH FACTS
Head-to-head
- This is their fifth meeting in League Cup history. Both teams have won two ties each, although Chelsea have been victorious in the last two, including the 2005 final.
- Kenny Dalglish has never lost to Chelsea in 12 matches as manager of Liverpool, winning nine and drawing three.
- Chelsea have won 12 times and Liverpool 10 of the 29 matches between the sides since October 2004.
Chelsea
- The four-time winners are looking to qualify for the semi-finals for the 11th time in their history.
- They are facing Premier League opposition for the third time in their three Carling Cup ties this season.
- The 0-0 draw (after extra-time) with Fulham in the third round is the only time Chelsea have failed to score in 23 ties.
Liverpool
- They have only failed to find the back of the net once in 41 League Cup outings - a 2-0 away defeat to Chelsea in the 2007 quarter-finals.
- This is their seventh away tie in their last eight League Cup matches.
- Liverpool are the most successful club in League Cup history, having won the competition seven times.
