Chelsea Morning Round-Up, Wednesday 28th October 2026: Alonso Readies Blues for Carabao Cup Trip to Anfield

It's a big night on Merseyside as Chelsea head to Anfield to face Liverpool in the Carabao Cup fourth round. Xabi Alonso has been speaking ahead of the game and even touched on his time working with Florian Wirtz at Bayer Leverkusen, while also giving a fresh update on Joao Pedro's injury situation (Football.London). The Blues boss has also praised Danny Welbeck, calling him a 'reference' point for the qualities he wants to see from his attack (ChelseaFC.com).

Team news has dominated the build-up. Alonso's press conference on Tuesday brought fresh injury updates on Joao Pedro, Martinez, Chavarria and Emegha, with return dates discussed for some of the squad (Football.London). Reports suggest as many as 12 players could be missing for the trip to Anfield, with Alonso addressing the extent of the injury blow (Football.London). Despite the squad being marginally better off than at the weekend, any returning player is said to be only a strong maybe to feature (We Ain't Got No History). Predicted line-up pieces suggest Alonso could make a host of changes, with decisions still to be made on Estevao and Rogers, and an alternative being lined up for Joao Pedro (Football.London).

There's also a storyline around Jordan Henderson, with a gesture from the midfielder reportedly surprising Chelsea fans and upsetting some Liverpool supporters ahead of his return to Anfield (Football.London). Elsewhere, Alonso has said he will celebrate if Chelsea score against his former club tonight (BBC Sport), while previews note that although it's a rivalry fixture on paper, it may not be the highest priority for either manager this season (We Ain't Got No History).

Kick-off at Anfield comes tonight, with Chelsea looking to progress in the Carabao Cup fourth round (Football.London) (Football.London) (We Ain't Got No History).

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