The fourth round of the EFL Cup will take centre stage on the English football calendar this week, with three matches set to take place in the competition on Tuesday.
A place in the quarter-finals is at stake for the winners of these last-16 ties, with all the clubs remaining in the competition starting to dream of a place in the final at Wembley on February 22, but which teams will move a step closer on Tuesday?
Understrength Blues to Prove Too Strong for Saints
Chelsea and Southampton will be meeting for the second time this month when they clash at Stamford Bridge, with the Blues having claimed a 3-1 Premier League victory at the start of October.
That has kick-started what is a four-match winning run for Thomas Tuchel’s side, with Saturday’s 7-0 thrashing of Norwich underlining the red-hot form of the club that currently sits top of the domestic standings.
The Blues also have an impressive recent record against Southampton, winning nine and losing just one of the last 13 meetings between the two sides.
Southampton are unbeaten since losing at Stamford Bridge, while they are the leading the scorers in this season’s EFL Cup, netting 10 goals in their two matches to that.
Ralph Hasenhuttl will certainly back his side to get on the scoresheet in west London, but Chelsea should ultimately prove too strong, with a home win and both teams to score potentially representing good value at 2/1.
Arsenal to Dispatch of Injury-Hit Leeds
Arsenal’s early-season woes appear to be behind them, with Friday’s eye-catching 3-1 victory over Aston Villa extending their unbeaten run across all competitions to seven matches – five of which have ended in victory.
By contrast, Leeds have only won on of their previous eight matches inside 90 minutes and they needed a penalty shootout to edge past Championship Fulham in the third round of this competition.
Marcelo Bielsa also has injury issues to contend with, as Raphinha has joined the likes of Patrick Bamford and Luke Ayling on the treatment table following the knock he picked up during Saturday’s Premier League draw with Wolves.
Leeds do not have much strength in depth, so the absence of key players is likely to cost the Whites, particularly in the final third, with Arsenal looking well placed at 33/20 to win the match to zero.
QPR to Face Stern Sunderland Test
Championship playoff hopefuls Queens Park Rangers will entertain the lowest ranked team left in this year’s EFL Cup when League One Sunderland visit the Kiyan Prince Foundation Stadium.
QPR have lost two of their previous three matches in the league, but their home form remains formidable, as they have only lost one of their last 10 fixtures on their own patch, a sequence that includes knocking Premier League Everton out of this competition in the third round.
However, Rangers will be facing a Sunderland side that are impressive on the road, as they have won four of their last five away fixtures across all competitions, as well as coming through all three rounds of this season’s EFL Cup on their travels – including knocking out Championship opposition in Blackpool in round two.
Recent meetings between these two have tended to go the way of QPR, although Sunderland’s only win across the last seven encounters was an away success in the EFL Cup five years ago.
With both managers having indicated they will make changes to their starting XIs for Tuesday’s match, this could well prove a tight contest, with a draw after 90 minutes perhaps representing the best value at 53/20.
*All odds correct at time of writing.