Chelsea travel to Molineux Stadium in midweek to play Wolverhampton Wanderers in the League Cup, and their biggest ever win over them was in the same competition in 2012.
The Blues travel to the West Midlands on Wednesday night to face Premier League rivals Wolves in the League Cup last 16.
Head coach Enzo Maresca could rest key Chelsea players for the cup tie because they play away at Tottenham in the league this weekend. Even so, a much-changed team should still be expected to be too strong for a Wolves side with zero wins from their opening nine top-flight matches this season.
Chelsea and Wolverhampton Wanderers players ahead of a League Cup tie.
Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images
Chelsea’s biggest ever victory against Wolves
On 25 September 2012, Chelsea hosted Wolves in the third round of the League Cup. At the time, the Blues were a Premier League outfit and Champions League holders, while Wolves were in the Championship following relegation in the previous season.
Roberto Di Matteo’s side thrashed Stale Solbakken’s side 6-0 at Stamford Bridge. That makes it Chelsea’s biggest ever win over Wolves (11v11.com).
Here is a look at the six different goalscorers from Chelsea’s resounding cup win.
Goalscorer Minute
Gary Cahill 4′
Ryan Bertrand 8′
Juan Mata 17′
Oriol Roomeu 53′
Fernando Torres 58′
Victor Moses 71′
As you can see above, Spanish playmaker Juan Mata was one of the individuals who got on the scoresheet during the rout. During that 2012-13 season, Mata scored 20 goals and provided 30 assists during 64 Chelsea appearances across all competitions, which was quite a staggering campaign.
Juan Mata celebrates scoring for Chelsea against Wolves in the League Cup.
Photo by Clive Rose/Getty Images
Age of Chelsea players when they thrashed Wolves
A major talking point at Stamford Bridge right now is around the extremely young squad at Chelsea, which is a real focus under this ownership. In contrast, the Blues would usually have experience under the previous regime.
Here is a look at Chelsea’s starting line-up from the Wolves victory in 2012:
Player Age at the time
Ross Turnbull 27
Cesar Azpilicueta 23
Gary Cahill 26
John Terry 31
Ryan Bertrand 23
Ramires 25
Oriol Romeu 21
Victor Moses 21
Juan Mata 24
Lucas Piazon 18
Fernando Torres 28
Meanwhile, here is the bench from the Wolves win over 13 years ago:
Player Age at the time
Hilario 36
David Luiz 25
Paolo Ferreira 33
John Obi Mikel 25
Oscar 21
Marko Marin 23
Eden Hazard 21
If you look at the Chelsea dressing room back then, it included the know-how of senior figures such as John Terry and Paolo Ferreira. That is the type of profile this current squad is crying out for right now.
Apparently, Enzo Maresca’s Chelsea won’t be signing ‘old timers’ anytime soon because they are confident of sticking with their youth policy.