Date: Saturday, October 19 Venue: Stamford Bridge Kick-Off: 15:00 BST Can Giant Killers Cardiff add another scalp to their name by beating Chelsea?
Team News
Chelsea will welcome Fernando Torres back into the side following the forward's recovery from a knee injury but left-back Ashley Cole remains injured and Andre Schurrle is out. Cole is still sidelined by he rib injury that caused him to sit out both of England's recent World Cup qualifiers, while Schurrle picked up a minor injury playing for Germany mid-week. Peter Odemwingie is expected to keep his place in Cardiff's attack in place of Craig Bellamy, while Danish striker Andreas Cornelius is the only notable absence for manager Malky Mackay. (BBC)
Key Stats
Chelsea haven't met Cardiff in league action since 1984 when the two sides played out a thrilling 3-3 draw in the old Division Two. The two sides did however recently clash in the FA Cup, when then-holders Chelsea won 4-1 at Stamford Bridge in February 2010. Cardiff's only away win this season came a mile away from Stamford Bridge - a 2-1 win at Fulham on 28 September. The Blues have scored two goals in each of their last eight league games at Stamford Bridge.
It's been a tumultuous week for Cardiff City fans, despite the fact their team hasn't been in action since October 5. At one stage, it looked as though their manager, Malky Mackay, might have walked out on the club after feuding with owner Vincent Tan over the dismissal of head of recruitment Iain Moody. It has since been confirmed that Mackay's position wasn't under threat as once feared, and the Blue Birds will now hope to draw a line under the affair following the conclusion of the international break. An away game against Chelsea probably isn't the best fixture of which to pick themselves back up, but the Welsh outfit can take solace from the fact they have already beaten one of the Premier League's top teams this season. On August 25, Cardiff sensationally slayed Manchester City 3-2 and soon after earned a hard-fought draw against Everton. Chelsea would be unwise then to take the newly-promoted team lightly but, following four unbeaten games on their travels, they'll be looking to maintain their 100% league record at Stamford Bridge at the weekend. Meetings between these two sides are rare. The last league encounter came back in 1984 in the old Division Two, but the Blues did prevail 4-1 in the FA Cup back in 2010. And it is difficult to see anything less than another win for Jose Mourinho's men this weekend.
Joseph is an accredited football journalist and has interviewed nearly all of the current 20 Barclay's Premier League managers. He is also a correspondent for Bleacher Report and has written for Caught Offside and Give Me Football.
