Chelsea
will qualify for the last 16 of the Champions League if they beat Qarabag in
Azerbaijan on Wednesday (kick-off 5pm, GMT).
Antonio Conte's side won the reverse fixture 6-0 in September but have
stuttered since in Group C, drawing 3-3 at home against Roma and then losing
3-0 to the Serie A side.
Still, with Qarabag having drawn twice against Atletico Madrid, a win in
Baku will see Chelsea secure a place in the next round, and a draw could be
enough depending how Atletico fare against Roma.
Qarabag are still in with an outside shot of qualifying themselves, and are
only one point behind Atletico in third place.
"We are preparing for a tough match," said manager Gurban Gurbanov. "It is
an important match both for us and rival. We understand everything. We know
the strength of our rival," he said.
"We will try to fight on the field till the end. This is our last match in
Baku."
Team news
Chelsea have no fresh injuries for the match, but Conte may rotate his
players, given the lengthy journey to Baku plus the proximity of Saturday's
match at Liverpool, so David Luiz could return.
Striker Michy Batshuayi (ankle), forward Charly Musonda (knee) and right
wing-back Victor Moses (hamstring) are absent alongside Kenedy, who has a
minor muscular issue.
For the home side, winger Pedro Enrique is suspended and Gurbanov is
sweating on the fitness of another winger, Dani Quintana. The Qarabag boss
says the club's medical staff will make a decision on his fitness on
Wednesday.
Opta stats
Chelsea have reached the knockout stages of the Champions League 13 times in
their previous 14 appearances; 76% of sides that have been sat on seven
points after their first four games in the Champions League since 2003/04
have progressed beyond the group stage.
Qarabag are yet to win a game this season in the Champions League; only on
three previous occasions has a club progressed to the aast 16 since 2003/04
(current format) in 90 instances having failing to claim a win in the
opening four matchdays.
Chelsea come into this game having lost a Champions League game by a margin
of 3+ goals for only the third time in their history (3-0 on the road
against Roma); 1-5 at Barcelona in April 2000 and 0-3 at Juventus in
November 2012.
That defeat to Roma was only Chelsea's second loss in their last 17 group
stage outings in the Champions League (W11 D4).
Qarabag have conceded three goals from corner situations this term in the
Champions League (a joint-high with Feyenoord); only two sides have claimed
more goals from corners than Chelsea this season (two).
Chelsea's last seven goals on the road in the Champions League have been
converted by different players (Batshuayi, Morata, Mikel, Zouma, Oscar,
Willian and Cahill).
Eden Hazard has created more goalscoring chances than any other player so
far in the 2017/18 Champions League campaign (17).
Charlie Nicholas' prediction
Chelsea have responded well to their issue but, as we saw Antonio Conte
linked with the Italy job, the feeling still does seem to be when he will
go, not if.
Eden Hazard is gradually looking sharper and Cesc Fabregas was fantastic at
the weekend. Conte will just want the job done and to save as much energy
before a long journey back.
I could see him resting Alvaro Morata, giving the young lad Charly Musonda
another game, but I do still see a strong side taking care of business.
Charlie predicts: 0-2 and Willian to score first (25/1 with Sky Bet)
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