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Frank
Lampard will return to Stamford Bridge as Derby manager when his side take
on Chelsea in the Carabao Cup on Wednesday, live on Sky Sports.
Lampard spent 13 years with the Blues and after guiding his side past his
former boss Jose Mourinho and Manchester United last time out, he has been
rewarded with a return to west London.
The former midfielder is relishing the trip to his former club for the
fourth-round tie, saying: "It's a special draw for me to be able to go back
and see people behind the scenes and 40,000-plus friends in the stadium.
"This [Derby] is my working home now and I have a great affiliation with
this club already. I'm working hard to try to do something good here, and I
love it here.
"But I can't forget 13 years of my career. It was a very special time for
me, I was lucky to be part of such a strong era at the club. So it will be a
very special night for me to be back there and to feel that atmosphere once
again."
Chelsea assistant coach Gianfranco Zola is not surprised by his former
team-mate's success at Derby and says he is looking forward to welcoming
Lampard back to Stamford Bridge.
"You can understand when somebody has a future in this position because to
succeed as a coach you really need to have the ability to think over things.
It seemed to me that Frank has always had this ability," he said.
"It's not a surprise for me he's doing well and he's going to do well. We're
very pleased to welcome him. He's a legend of the club. He's done so much
for the club. We really wish him continuously well as a coach."
Team news
Derby have been granted permission by Chelsea to select on-loan
pair Mason Mount and Fikayo Tomori for the game, and although Mount limped
off with a knock in Saturday's draw with Middlesbrough, it appears he will
be fit.
Craig Bryson (calf), George Evans (knee), Joe Ledley (hip) and Marcus Olsson
(knee) are expected to miss out.
For Chelsea, Eden Hazard (back), Pedro (illness) and Olivier Giroud (leg)
are doubtful, while Ethan Ampadu (knee) has returned to training.
Match stats
Chelsea and Derby last met in December 2014 in the League Cup quarter-final,
with the Blues winning 3-1 at Pride Park.
Derby have lost each of their last eight away matches against Chelsea, all
in league competition between 1990 and 2008.
Chelsea have scored in each of their last 22 matches against Derby, a run
stretching back to January 1988 - the last Rams goalkeeper to keep a clean
sheet against them was Peter Shilton in November 1987.
Chelsea have progressed from 18 of their last 19 League Cup ties against
non-Premier League opponents - the exception was a fourth round exit on
penalties against Burnley in 2008-09 after a 1-1 draw at Stamford Bridge.
Derby, who eliminated Man Utd in the last round, haven't knocked out two
top-flight sides in a single League Cup campaign since 1968-69 under Brian
Clough, when they knocked out Chelsea and Everton.
In the Premier League era, only one team has ever eliminated both Chelsea
and Manchester United in a single League Cup campaign - Sunderland did so in
2013-14 on their way to reaching the final.
As a player, Frank Lampard didn't end on the losing side in any of his last
19 matches at Stamford Bridge (W15 D4 L0 - 18 games with Chelsea, one with
Man City).
Charlie's predictions
It will be an emotional return for Frank Lampard at Stamford Bridge but only
to a certain point as he has got a job to do and he's the kind of guy that
will be as professional as you can be. He will be solely focused on getting
another big result here, don't you worry about that.
He has got some great youngsters there like Mason Mount from Chelsea, who
can play against his own team, and Harry Wilson from Liverpool, but I think
this one is just a step too far for them with Olivier Giroud and Cesc
Fabregas getting a run out.
CHARLIE PREDICTS: 2-0 (11/2 with Sky Bet)
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