Mauricio Pochettino, Chelsea’s manager at the age of 51, expresses confidence that playing at home will be a crucial factor in overturning the League Cup semi-final against Middlesbrough.
The London club, with a history of winning the League Cup five times, is set to face Middlesbrough on Tuesday, entering the match with a 1-0 deficit from the first leg.
“It is a passport to the final, to visit Wembley. It’s really important for us, the club, and for everyone,” Pochettino told reporters on Monday.
“We want to be in the final but first of all, we need to beat a very good team in Middlesbrough. We could not beat them in the first leg, but we are very confident that we can have a very good game in front of our fans and the energy from the fans.”
There is no chance French forward Christopher Nkunku will be fit to play due to a hip injury, the manager said, and Chelsea will also be without right back Malo Gusto.
Chelsea have recalled midfielder Cesare Casadei and forward Diego Moreira from loan spells at Leicester and Olympique Lyonnais.
“It will help us, as we had been suffering from injuries,” Pochettino said.
Casadei is ineligible to participate in this week’s League Cup or FA Cup matches as he has already featured for Leicester in both competitions.
Chelsea currently finds themselves in the ninth position on the Premier League table, trailing 12 points behind fourth-placed Aston Villa. They will face Aston Villa in the FA Cup fourth round on Friday.
Under Pochettino’s management, Chelsea has maintained an unbeaten record in their last eight games at Stamford Bridge across all competitions. Their upcoming league fixture is against league leaders Liverpool on January 31.