Chelsea and Arsenal will lock horns at Stamford Bridge this week in an all-London Carabao Cup semi-final, live on talkSPORT.
After stepping into the Blues' hot seat, Liam Rosenior can get the fans on side immediately by guiding his team to the first available silverware of the season.
Liam Rosenior celebrates.
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Rosenior impressed on his touchline debut in Chelsea's win over Charlton on SaturdayCredit: Getty
Announced as Chelsea head coach last week, Rosenior got off to a winning start with a 5-1 FA Cup win over Championship Charlton.
But the Englishman's first real test comes against the Gunners in this two-legged cup tie, with a place at Wembley at stake.
Victory over Charlton saw the Blues put an end to a five-game winless run in the Premier League, which has caused them drop to eighth in the table.
And they face a formidable opponent next, coming up against an Arsenal side that are unbeaten in nine games, winning eight of them.
Read more on Carabao Cup
The Gunners are six points clear at the top of the Premier League, and came through unscathed in the FA Cup at the weekend, thrashing Portsmouth 4-1 at Fratton Park.
Chelsea vs Arsenal: Date and how to follow
ThisCarabao Cupsemi-final first leg clash will take place on Wednesday, January 14.
Kick off at Stamford Bridge is set for 8pm.
talkSPORT will have live coverage from west London, with Adrian Durham serving as your presenter.
Commentary will come from Sam Matterface and former England midfielder Danny Murphy.
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The match will be also broadcast live on Sky Sports Football and Sky Sports Main Event.
Gabriel Martinelli scored a hat-trick in Arsenal's FA Cup win over Portsmouth
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Gabriel Martinelli scored a hat-trick in Arsenal's FA Cup win over PortsmouthCredit: Getty
This will be the ninth EFL Cup meeting between Chelsea and Arsenal, with the Blues boasting the superior head-to-head record (W4 L3 D1). They have met at the semi-final stage on two separation occasions, with the Gunners winning the tie over two legs both times (in 1998 and 2018).
In the last Carabao Cup encounter between the two sides, in the 2018 semi-finals, Arsenal claimed a 2-1 aggregate win. After a 0-0 draw in the first leg, Granit Xhaka scored the winner in a 2-1 victory in the return leg to fire the north Londoners to Wembley.
Arsenal are unbeaten in eight games against Chelsea (W5 D4), all of which have been in the Premier League. The two sides shared the spoils in their last encounter, with a 1-1 draw at Stamford Bridge in November.
Chelsea's last victory over Arsenal came in August 2021, when goals from Reece James and Romelu Lukaku gave the Blues a 2-0 league win at the Emirates.
Arsenal are targeting a first League Cup win since 1993, which came after a 2-1 victory over Sheffield Wednesday at Wembley. Meanwhile Chelsea last tasted glory under Jose Mourinho in 2015, beating Tottenham 2-0 in the final.
Chelsea vs Arsenal: Team news
Chelsea will be without key midfielder Moises Caicedo for their semi-final first leg, who is ruled out through suspension.
The Ecuadorian picked up his second yellow card of the competition in the previous round against Cardiff, earning him a one-match ban.
It remains to be seen whether Cole Palmer, Malo Gusto and Reece James will feature against Arsenal, after Liam Rosenior admitted the trio had been rested against Charlton as a precaution.
Levi Colwill remains a long-term absentee with an ACL injury, while no return date has been given for Romeo Lavia and Dario Essugo.
Meanwhile, Arsenal defensive trio Riccardo Calafiori, Piero Hincapie and Cristhian Mosquera are all set to miss the Chelsea clash.
Calafiori has not featured for the Gunners since their Carabao Cup quarter-final win over Crystal Palace after picking up a knock, while Hincapie limped off during the 0-0 draw with Liverpool last week.
Summer signing Mosquera has been sidelined since early December with an ankle injury, and it is not yet clear when he will return.
Arsenal will also be without young star Max Dowman, who sustained an ankle ligament injury in December, ruling him out for two months.
Chelsea vs Arsenal: Last five meetings
November 2025 - Chelsea 1-1 Arsenal, Premier League
March 2025 - Arsenal 1-0 Chelsea, Premier League
November 2024 - Chelsea 1-1 Arsenal, Premier League
April 2024 - Arsenal 5-0 Chelsea, Premier League
October 2023 - Chelsea 2-2 Arsenal, Premier League
Three of Arsenal's four goals against Chelsea came from set pieces
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Three of Arsenal's four goals against Chelsea came from set piecesCredit: Getty
Chelsea vs Arsenal: What has been said?
Ahead of a huge first home game as Chelsea boss, Rosenior refused to put any pressure on the occasion.
Asked if this was one of the biggest games of his managerial career, he replied: "People will look at it that way but I don't see it like that.
"I live in the now - it's the most important game because it's the next one. I mean that.
"I'm happy with the process in which we work as a staff and the players are taking it on. That's how I see it."
Rosenior also refused to call Arsenal reliant on set-pieces, who have now scored 23 goals from dead-ball situations this season.
The new Blues boss said: "Arsenal are good at everything, they have a good team.
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"It's not about taking the team back in time. I respect them, I think they'll respect us, we're a good team as well.
"I don't know who's calling them Set Piece FC, I'm certainly not."