Leeds vs Chelsea Preview, Team News, Likely Line-ups & Predicted Score

Chelsea take on old foes Leeds United at Elland Road tonight in the quarter finals of the Capital One Cup.

The Blues head into the game just three days after missing out on the World Club Cup after a narrow 1-0 defeat to Corinthians, but their preparations for tonight’s game were hampered after their flight back to the UK was delayed by over 12-hours.

The match will be the first meeting of Neil Warnock and Rafa Benitez since the pair were involved in several spat’s during the Spaniard’s time at Liverpool.

Leeds go into the game in good form having won four of their last five games in the Championship, while Chelsea’s form is mixed having won three, drawn two and lost two of their last seven in all competitions.

Warnock will be hoping for another upset after already seeing off Premier League duo Everton and Southampton in previous rounds.

Team News

Chelsea will once again be without captain John Terry who continues to recover from a knee injury, while Gary Cahill is suspended for the game after seeing red against Corinthians on Sunday. Branislav Ivanovic is therefore expected to play alongside David Luiz in the middle of defence.

Central midfield is also an area of concern for Benitez with John Obi Mikel and Ramires suspended, and Oriol Romeu ruled out for the season with a knee injury. Frank Lampard is therefore likely to play alongside Oscar, with Victor Moses, Juan Mata and Eden Hazard supporting Fernando Torres in attack.

Daniel Sturridge is a major doubt with a hamstring injury but the Chelsea line-up may be determined by those who are feeling fresh following their long-haul trip to Japan.

Leeds are likely to without goalkeeper Jamie Ashdown so Paddy Kenny is expected to deputise between the sticks.

Captain Lee Peltier is likely to miss out with a shoulder problem and on-loan West Brom winger Jerome Thomas is also a doubt. Alan Tate is unavailable having played for parent club Swansea in an earlier round.

Likely Line-ups

Predicted Score

Elland Road will be bouncing with Chelsea coming to town and it will not be an easy ride for the European champions. But if Rafa can call upon his star names, the Blues should have too much quality for the Championship outfit. Our score prediction is Leeds 1-2 Chelsea, which currently has odds of 7/1 at William Hill.

What would your line-up be and what’s your score prediction? Get involved in the comments section below.