Leeds United will hope to keep their unbeaten start to the season going when they take on Chelsea in the third-round EFL Cup clash at Stamford Bridge on Wednesday night.
Daniel Farke’s side have five points from their opening three Premier League games and beat Nottingham Forest away from home in the second round of the EFL Cup.
Chelsea are coming into the game on the back of a 2-1 defeat against Premier League champions Arsenal, who are again looking ominous at the start of the campaign.
However, both teams have injury worries ahead of the big game on Wednesday, and that is expected to reflect on their team selections at Stamford Bridge.
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Chelsea vs Leeds United injury news
Chelsea manager Xabi Alonso has indicated that he would not take any undue risks with the fitness of Moises Caicedo against Leeds United on Wednesday night.
The midfielder has struggled with injuries at the start of the season and was missing from the Chelsea squad after making a cameo appearance from the bench against Brighton.
New signing Marco Palestra is on his way to regaining full fitness, but the Leeds game may be too early for him to return to action on the pitch.
Jordan Henderson is still recovering from a wrist injury he sustained at the World Cup and is still not close to returning to action this season.
Leeds also have a couple of injury worries. Joe Rodon has been ruled out for more than two months after sustaining a hamstring injury in the 1-1 draw against Brentford.
Ilia Gruev returned to training in recent weeks after recovering from a knee injury, but the Chelsea clash may be too early for his return.
Farke will not take risks with injuries
Gruev has been training with the first-team squad and is on course to return to action in the near future. However, Farke is unlikely to take any chances.
The Bulgarian has just returned from a serious knee injury, and the Leeds boss will want him to build back his fitness before he appears on the pitch again.
Farke has Sean Longstaff and Ao Tanaka to call upon to start as the midfield two, and even Ethan Ampadu could start, given the quality of the Chelsea team.
The manager has enough options to ensure that Gruev is not rushed immediately back after recovering from a big injury.
