It’s fourth in the Premier League versus fourth in the Championship on Sunday afternoon as Chelsea host Nottingham Forest at Stamford Bridge in the third round of the FA Cup.
Frank Lampard’s side endured a disappointing 1-1 draw against Brighton at the Amex Stadium on New Year’s Day and will be looking to kick off their FA Cup campaign with victory over Forest. With just one win in their last three fixtures, Lampard will be eager to avoid defeat and attempt to set the Blues on course for their first FA Cup since 2017/18.
Meanwhile, Sabri Lamouchi’s side recorded a 3-2 win over Blackburn in an enthralling game of football last time our to put the Reds equal on points with third-placed Brentford. Forest have won their last three games and will be looking to cause another famous FA Cup upset over Chelsea.
With his sides Premier League top four challenge receiving severe dents in the past few weeks, Lampard will no doubt be looking to regain some confidence in his side against Nottingham Forest in the FA Cup.
Where To Watch
When Is Kick Off? | Sunday 5 January |
What Time Is Kick Off? | 14:01 (GMT) |
Where Is It Played? | Stamford Bridge |
TV Channel/Live Stream? | Final Score/The FA Cup (Highlights) |
Referee? | Peter Bankes |
Team News
Ruben Loftus-Cheek remains absent due to an ongoing achilles tendon issue which has kept the 23-year-old out of action since May. Another long-term absentee, Marko van Ginkel, continues to step up his rehabilitation following his ACL injury, while Olivier Giroud (ankle) and Marcos Alonso (back) remain sidelined.
Nottingham Forest also have a number of injuries to contend with. Tendayi Darikwa (ACL), Michael Hefele (achilles), Yohan Benalouane (hip) and Yuri Ribeiro (knee) will be unavailable for selection.
Potential Lineups
Chelsea: | Caballero; Lamptey, Christensen, Tomori, Emerson; Kante, Kovacic, Mount; Hudson-Odoi, Pulisic, Batshuayi |
Nottingham Forest: | Samba; Jenkinson, Figueiredo, Worrall, Robinson; Sow, Carvalho, Adomah, Semedo; Ameobi, Grabban |
Head-To-Head Record
Despite playing in separate leagues, this will be the second meeting in as many season for Chelsea and Nottingham Forest, with the former running out 2-0 winners in this fixture at the same stage of the competition last season.
There have been 93 meetings in total between the two sides, with Chelsea edging proceedings with 39 wins to Forest’s 26 wins with the remaining 28 games ending in a draw.
Recent Form
There was a lot of buzz around Stamford Bridge when Lampard took charge of his former side with a string of impressive performances. However, Chelsea have begun to falter in recent weeks and have subsequently won just two of their last six Premier League fixtures – coming in the form of 2-0 and 2-1 away wins over London rivals Tottenham Hotspur and Arsenal respectively.
The Blues have registered back-to-back home losses – against Bournemouth and Southampton – for the first time since 2011, and drew against Brighton on New Year’s Day to further compound their poor form.
Nottingham Forest have started to pick up form recently, resulting in three straight league wins against Hull, Wigan and most recently Blackburn. The Tricky Trees have scored seven in their last four games and haven’t failed to score away from home since November, meaning they could prove to be a tough test for Chelsea on Sunday.
Lewis Grabban remains pivotal for Nottingham Forest having scored 14 goals and registered one assist so far this campaign, scoring with a staggering 70% of his shots on target.
Here is how both teams have performed in their previous five fixtures across all competitions.
Chelsea | Nottingham Forest |
Brighton 1-1 Chelsea (01/01) | Forest 3-2 Blackburn (01/01) |
Arsenal 1-2 Chelsea (29/12) | Forest 1-0 Wigan (29/12) |
Chelsea 0-2 Southampton (26/12) | Hull 0-2 Forest (26/12) |
Tottenham 0-2 Chelsea (22/12) | Huddersfield 2-1 Forest (21/12) |
Chelsea 0-1 Bournemouth (14/12) | Forest 0-4 Sheffield Wednesday (14/12) |
Prediction
Just like last season’s fixture, Chelsea should be able to comfortably see off their Championship counterparts on Sunday afternoon.
Chelsea possess a superior strength in depth and will have a crop of players looking to prove themselves to Lampard – who himself won four FA Cups with Chelsea – and progress onto the fourth round.
Nottingham Forest, however, will have ideas of their own and will be looking to exact revenge on a relatively inexperienced Chelsea side. The Red’s are in fine goalscoring form and should therefore be able to get on the scoresheet and potentially score another famous FA Cup upset.
Saturday’s fixture should make for a fiery, tightly-contested affair with both teams gunning for the win with goals at both ends.
Prediction: Chelsea 3-2 Nottingham Forest
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