Hello and welcome to Sports Mole's live coverage of the EFL Cup final between Chelsea and Manchester City.
The Blues have defeated the likes of Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur to reach this stage of the competition, but head coach Maurizio Sarri is aware that a heavy defeat on Sunday could leave him on the brink of the sack.
City are looking to complete the first part of the quadruple, and Pep Guardiola is also keen to successfully defend the trophy which his team lifted with victory over Arsenal 12 months ago.
The North-West giants prevailed by a 6-0 scoreline when these sides met in the Premier League earlier this month.
28 minSHOT! City spring back into life and a number of sharp passes lead to a chance for Aguero on the edge of the area, but the forward's shot is deflected and easily dealt with by Arrizabalaga.
27 minNothing comes from the set piece but Chelsea try to engineer another chance with Palmieri attempting to find Hazard with a lofted through-ball, only for the pass to be collected by Ederson.
25 minMuch better from Chelsea who put together a nice passing move down the left before winning a free kick in a threatening area on the opposite side of the pitch.
24 minChelsea were 4-0 down at this stage in the game at the Etihad Stadium. They have at least given themselves something to work with this afternoon, although they remain second best.
22 minCHANCE! Finally a chance for City. A floated cross finds Aguero at the back post but after taking a touch, the forward volleys over the crossbar from around 12 yards out.
21 minCity are beginning to crank things up a notch, with two inswinging crosses from the right having to be cleared by Chelsea. Again, each of Sarri's men find themselves in defensive positions.
19 minThat said, Chelsea are ensuring that everything remains congested for their opponents. Fernandinho has just attempted to thread a pass into the path of the advancing Sterling, but it would have had to be pinpoint in order to come off.
17 minBarkley is having to work hard in order to keep tabs on De Bruyne. The Belgian is starting to drop deeper, but it is creating more space in the areas ahead of him.
15 minSuch has been Chelsea's recent demise that getting through the opening quarter-of-an-hour without much alarm will be regarded as a success. It's a small victory, but an important one.
13 minThat half-chance was a wake-up call for City and they have proceeded to dominate possession ever since. Chelsea are very much playing on the counter.
11 minAlmost an opening for Chelsea, and for Kante. Laporte failed to deal with a long ball and Kante appeared to have the better of Zinchenko on his way through on goal. However, the left-back got across well to deal with the danger.
9 minChelsea are now starting to keep everyone - including Hazard - in a deep position. Hazard was just halfway inside his own half! I suppose that it is understandable given how the game panned out at the Etihad Stadium.
7 minChelsea are yet to have a single touch in the final third. Hazard is already looking a lonely figure in attack with Willian and Pedro having to work hard in defensive positions down the flanls.
5 minCity are already in their stride and posing a threat going forward. There have been a couple of occasions where Chelsea look vulnerable.
3 minCity have had the better of the early minutes, although a corner came to nothing with Barkley heading clear.
1 minIt's a dramatic start with Aguero going down holding his face within seconds of kickoff. The Argentine and Jorginho collided on the halfway line, but the forward is back on his feet.
1 minKICKOFF: Chelsea get us underway!
4.28pmA reminder of the two starting lineups...
CHELSEA XI: Arrizabalaga; Azpilicueta, Rudiger, Luiz, Palmieri; Kante, Jorginho, Barkley; Willian, Hazard, Pedro
MANCHESTER CITY XI: Ederson, Walker, Otamendi, Laporte, Zinchenko; Fernandinho; D.Silva, De Bruyne; Bernardo, Sterling, Aguero
4.26pmIt's time for the national anthem. It is perhaps at this point where Sarri remembers that he is just one win away from lifting his first trophy as a manger. It's a massive occasion for the Italian on a personal level.
4.24pmIt's time for the two teams to start making their way out at Wembley Stadium. Both sets of players look focused, but there will definitely be more nerves in the Chelsea camp.
4.22pmChelsea and City have only met in a final on one occasion, and that was in the 1985-86 Full Members Cup. Chelsea won 5-4 and it remains the highest-scoring final in Wembley history. An omen, perhaps...?
4.20pmThere have not been many Wembley showdowns between the sides, but they did squared off in the Community Shield back in August with City easing to a 2-0 success.
4.18pmCity thrashed Chelsea by a 6-0 scoreline earlier this month, and the North-West giants have won six of the last 10 matches between the clubs. However, Chelsea have emerged victorious in the other four, including at Stamford Bridge in December.
4.16pmHEAD TO HEAD! Today's showdown represents the 163rd competitive meeting between the two sides, with Chelsea registering 67 wins in comparison to 56 victories for City.
4.14pmPREDICTION! It would be a damning indictment for Chelsea if they lost in a similar manner to the league game between the two sides earlier this month, but it would also be a significant surprise if they were to avoid defeat altogether. Almost everything points towards a Man City win, and it is hard to look past the holders on current form. City to prevail by a 2-0 scoreline.
4.12pmRESULT! The game at the Emirates Stadium has also reached a conclusion with Arsenal registering a 2-0 win over Southampton. You can read our on-the-whistle report by clicking here.
4.10pmRESULT! The full-time whistle has gone at Old Trafford and Manchester United and Liverpool have played out a goalless draw. However, it was not a game lacking in incident! Click here to read our on-the-whistle report.
4.08pmChelsea have recently made their way out for the warm-up. Sarri will be desperate for his side to avoid another early capitulation against Man City.
Warm-up time at Wembley! 💪#CHEMCI pic.twitter.com/lSvFt8OxzK— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) February 24, 2019
4.06pmChelsea enjoyed their visits to Wembley last year with wins coming over Tottenham Hotspur, Southampton and Manchester United but it has been a different story this year. Three defeats have come against Spurs - twice - and to Man City in the Community Shield.
4.04pmCity won this competition last year with a routine triumph over Arsenal, and the Premier League champions are looking to become just the fourth team to retain the trophy.
4.02pmIt's fair to say that City have had an easier route through to the final than Chelsea. Guardiola's side have come through ties with Oxford United, Fulham, Leicester City and Burton Albion, whereas Chelsea have needed to defeat Liverpool, Derby County, Bournemouth and Tottenham Hotspur!
4.00pmIt has also been 26 years since Chelsea and Man City met in this competition, which seems crazy! On that occasion, City prevailed by a 1-0 scoreline at Maine Road.
3.58pmThese two sides are meeting in the final of this competition for the first time, and they are head into this game on five wins apiece. The victor will move into second place behind Liverpool in the list of most League Cup triumphs.
3.56pmIt's a nice day in North London and this is what the two teams are playing for. Which shade of blue will be on that trophy later today?
We've arrived at Wembley Stadium!
🔜 #CarabaoCupFinal #CHEMCI pic.twitter.com/cRo7nGzehb— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) February 24, 2019
3.54pmLeroy Sane is another who may have expected to come back into the team, especially after his impact against Schalke in the Champions League. However, the winger instead begins on the bench alongside Riyad Mahrez.
3.52pmYoung goalkeeper Arijanet Muric may have expected to start having featured in each of the previous rounds, but Guardiola has instead opted to go with regular number one Ederson. That should tell you everything that you need to know about Guardiola's desire to win this trophy.
3.50pmJohn Stones and Gabriel Jesus have both missed out on a place in the squad. The pair have been carrying minor injuries, and Guardiola has made the decision to not take any risks during what is a hectic schedule.
3.48pmAs for Manchester City, Pep Guardiola has made just the one change to the team which defeated Schalke 04 on Wednesday night. Oleksandr Zinchenko has been included at left-back, with Ilkay Gundogan only appearing among the replacements.
3.46pmThere had been doubts over the fitness of goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga, who sustained a hamstring problem earlier this week. However, the Spaniard has been deemed fit enough to return to the first XI< with Willy Caballero dropping down to the bench.
3.44pmThe main talking point at the back is the inclusion of Emerson Palmieri at left-back. Marcos Alonso has been first choice since Sarri's arrival at Stamford Bridge, but the Spaniard does not feature in the 18-man squad. You would think that is down to an injury. The rest of the defence is as expected.
3.42pmJorginho and N'Golo Kante both feature in midfield, and it is Ross Barkley who has being given the nod over Mateo Kovacic. The Englishman netted in each of Chelsea's Europa League games against Malmo earlier this month.
3.40pmLet's take a look at the Chelsea side as Maurizio Sarri opts to begin the match with a recognised centre forward. Eden Hazard will play down the middle with Willian and Pedro on either flank. Gonzalo Higuain and Olivier Giroud are both on the bench.
3.38pmMANCHESTER CITY XI: Ederson, Walker, Otamendi, Laporte, Zinchenko; Fernandinho; D.Silva, De Bruyne; Bernardo, Sterling, Aguero
MANCHESTER CITY SUBSTITUTES: Muric, Danilo, Kompany, Gundogan, Sane, Mahrez, Foden
3.36pmCHELSEA XI: Arrizabalaga; Azpilicueta, Rudiger, Luiz, Palmieri; Kante, Jorginho, Barkley; Willian, Hazard, Pedro
CHELSEA SUBSTITUTES: Caballero, Christensen, Kovacic, Loftus-Cheek, Hudson-Odoi, Higuain, Giroud
3.34pmWithout further ado, let's take a look at the two starting lineups, beginning with Chelsea...
3.32pmLATEST! Before we get onto the team news, let's point you in the direction of the matches which are currently taking place in the Premier League. Manchester United and Liverpool are currently goalless at Old Trafford, while Arsenal lead Southampton at the Emirates Stadium. You can follow either of those games by clicking on the respective teams above.
3.30pmHello and welcome to Sports Mole's live coverage of the EFL Cup final between Chelsea and Manchester City. These two clubs met as recently as two weeks ago and it was one-way traffic in City's favour, but can Chelsea find a way to gain revenge on a big stage?
