Put simply, tonight is the biggest game of Chelsea’s season so far.
A win and ability to turn around a 1-0 deficit from the first leg of the EFL Cup semi-final will see them book their place at Wembley to face either Fulham or Liverpool in the final.
Standing in their way are a Middlesbrough side who were formidable in the first leg of this tie, albeit because of how bad Chelsea were at the Riverside.
Mauricio Pochettino elected to go back to one of his old tricks by utilising Cole Palmer as a false nine.
While this worked against Arsenal earlier this season, this time the £45m deadline day signing missed a host of good chances as they fell to defeat.
He was clearly gutted at full-time, and immediately looked to make up for his errors with a performance in the Premier League against their West-London rivals.
He did so as he scored in the only goal from the spot as Chelsea picked up a 1-0 win at Stamford Bridge.
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Palmer needs big performance
While many Chelsea fans would argue that the Englishman has been the clubs player of the year so far this season, there is no doubting that last time he didn’t turn up in the biggest occasion.
Despite the fact that they are playing a Championship side, the pressure will be firmly on the Blues to find an early goal and take the game to the lower league opposition.
Whether he plays the false nine role again or instead drops into a slightly deeper position, the former Manchester City man needs a big display to silence any doubters that still remain.
He is still going to be one of the first names on the teamsheet tonight, and many inside Stamford Bridge will be looking to him to have the game winning impact.