And so we huddle around our radios like in the golden olden days, the smell of singed dust filling the air, vacuum tubes humming into life with a golden glow.
MATCHDAY | The calm before the storm... pic.twitter.com/q5md2hZ48u
— Walsall FC Official (@WFCOfficial) September 23, 2015
It must be League Cup Third Round time, we sigh contentedly.
"Walsall are a good team. They are playing well and trying to be promoted. For them it's a big occasion and as I was saying, it's important to respect them and to go with a good team with the desire to win."
-Jose Mourinho; source: Chelsea FC
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Walsall starting XI:
Neil Etheridge | Jason Demetriou, James O'Connor, Paul Downing, Adam Chambers (c), Sam Mantom, Romaine Sawyers, Rico Henry, Milan Lalkovic, Kieron Morris, Jordan Cook
Substitutes from: Andy Taylor, James Baxendale, Anthony Forde, Craig MacGillivray, Matt Preston, Reece Flanagan, Liam Kinsella
Chelsea starting lineup (4-3-3):
Asmir Begovic | Baba Rahman, John Terry (c), Gary Cahill, Branislav Ivanovic | Ruben Loftus-Cheek, John Obi Mikel, Ramires | Kenedy, Radamel Falcao, Loic Remy
Substitutes from: Jamal Blackman, Ola Aina, Papy Djilobodji, Nemanja Matic, Eden Hazard, Bertrand Traore, Pedro
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Unsurprsingly I suppose, Mourinho has not gone all out with the youth, though only three players retain their starting spots from Saturday (Begovic, Cahill, Ivanovic). Begovic in goal is a bit of a surprise to me. Big Papy on the bench. Hopefully we'll get to see him and maybe Aina and Traore get on as well.
Loftus-Cheek could push up to make this a 4-2-3-1, with Mikel and Ramires in the pivot and Kenedy and Remy on the wings. Also, congrats to the captain for this 650th start in all competitions for Chelsea.
Meanwhile, the hosts do give the start to Lalkovic in the Lalkovic Derby.
UP THE CHELS!