Chelsea travel to Cardiff hoping to book a place in the Carabao Cup semi-final.
Enzo Maresca’s side returned to winning ways at the weekend, beating Everton 2-0 at Stamford Bridge to put their disappointments of recent weeks behind them.
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The Blues had suffered a bit of a slump after their 3-0 Champions League win over Barcelona in November, drawing to Arsenal and Bournemouth, and losing to Leeds and Atalanta.
Now, Chelsea are presented with a totally different test.
They take on League One opposition in the quarter-final of the Carabao Cup, with Brian Barry-Murphy’s side four points clear at the top of the table.
The Bluebirds, previously a top-flight club themselves, saw a youthful XI thrashed 5-1 at home by AFC Wimbledon in the Vertu Trophy last time out, but they will surely be more up for this one when the big boys come to town.
Date, kick-off time and venue
Cardiff vs Chelsea is scheduled for an 8pm GMT kick-off tonight, Tuesday, December 16, 2025.
The match will take place at the Cardiff City Stadium.
Where to watch Cardiff vs Chelsea
TV channel: In the UK, the game will be televised live on Sky Sports Main Event, with coverage starting at 7.30pm GMT ahead of an 8pm GMT kick off.
Live stream: Sky Sports subscribers can also catch the contest live online via the Sky Go app.
Live blog: You can follow all the action on matchday via Standard Sport’s live blog, with expert analysis from Dom Smith at the ground!
Cardiff vs Chelsea team news
Chelsea will be without Cole Palmer as his minutes continue to be managed after Enzo Maresca admitted that the England international’s problem makes “no sense”.
The Blues are also without injured trio Liam Delap, Dario Essugo, and Romeo Lavia, meanwhile Levi Colwill is a long-term absentee.
Moises Caicedo, however, is available again after serving a three-match ban for the red card he received against Arsenal at the end of November.
The midfielder, though, may not start as Maresca could have an eye on this weekend’s Premier League showdown with Newcastle but the likes of Jorrel Hato, Josh Acheampong and Jamie Gittens could start in a rotated team.
Cardiff, meanwhile, have a full complement available to them.
This means former Arsenal defender Calum Chambers is expected to captain the side but Omari Kellyman is expected to miss out against his parent club.
Cardiff vs Chelsea prediction
Depending on what side Maresca picks, you would expect Chelsea to cruise through here.
But weirder things have happened, and the domestic cups love a fairytale upset.
That shouldn’t be the case, however.
Chelsea to win, 3-1.
Head to head (h2h) history and results
This will be the first meeting between the two sides since 2019 when late goals from Cesar Azpilicueta and Ruben Loftus-Cheek gave Chelsea a comeback win.
Cardiff wins: 15
Chelsea wins: 20
Draws: 10
Cardiff vs Chelsea match odds
Cardiff to qualify: 15/2
Chelsea to qualify: 1/4
Odds via Betfair (subject to change).
