After a nightmarish start to the 2015/2016 season, Chelsea supporters hoped that the New Year would bring better fortunes for the Blues. Under Guus Hiddink - in his second caretaker spell with the London giants - they started 2016 off well to inch up the table. However, with the gulf between them and the top four sides still a massive one, and the team still lacking the confidence shown last season, Chelsea still do have a good chance at winning some silverware this season - provided they can dispatch Scunthorpe United in their FA Cup third round clash later today.
Chelsea
Although they moved themselves six points clear of the drop zone after defeating Crystal Palace 3-0, interim coach Hiddink is taking a very practical approach regarding Chelsea's chances of overall success this term:
Hiddink says the target of fourth place in the league is a difficult one and the FA Cup is a target the players can achieve. #CFC
— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) January 8, 2016
And who can blame him? After all, with just 23 points, Chelsea are in 14th place, six points away from teams like Watford and Stoke who are inside the top ten in 9th and 10th respectively. Meanwhile, city rivals Arsenal sit a comfortable 19 points ahead at the top of the table, and the last Champions League placed team - yet another London rival in Tottenham - enjoy a 13 point gap over the reigning Premier League champions.
So, naturally, given this, a top four finish and Champions League football for the 2016/2017 season may be too tough an ask for the Blues, hence why the Dutch tacitican appears to be placing all his stock in winning the FA Cup. In any case, their third round opponents, Scunthorpe United, should really present them no difficulties and could give Hiddink a chance to rest some of his key players ahead of a busy week for Chelsea.
This will be the first of three fixtures across all competitions that Chelsea play at Stamford Bridge. Following this match, they will resume league action against West Brom on January 13th and then wrap up the week with a clash against Everton on the 16th.
As of now, Hiddink's only fit striker is still Diego Costa, as both Loic Remy and Radamel Falcao - the latter of whom has not enjoyed life in England so far - are out with calf and groin injuries respectively. Additionally, Eden Hazard, who limped off during their win over Crystal Palace last weekend has been diagnosed with a groin problem and will play no part in this game.
Chelsea historically have fared well at this stage in the FA Cup. In fact, the last time they failed to get past the third round was back in 1998, when they were defeated 5-3 by Manchester United. It will also be the second FA Cup meeting for the Blues versus Scunthorpe; the first was 11 years ago in January 2005 when they rolled to a 3-1 win over them at Stamford Bridge.
Scunthorpe United
Meanwhile, Chelsea's upcoming opponents Scunthorpe United have not beaten a top flight side in FA Cup action since 1970 when they defeated Sheffield Wednesday (who were then playing in the first tier) 2-1.
Since then, Scunthorpe, who feature in League One (English football's third tier) have played 14 times against first-division opponents and have only managed to avoid defeat on two of those occasions when they managed to salvage a draw. The Iron, who once were in League Two as recently as 2005, made it up to the Championship, but were relegated to League One in 2011 and been unable to return to the second-tier since then.
The team's top scorer is currently Paddy Madden, who has 10 league goals and 13 across all competitions. Despite reportedly suffering from a hamstring issue, manager Mark Robins will be heavily counting on the Irish striker to lead the line as Scunthorpe hope to stage a massive upset at Stamford Bridge.
Which channel is broadcasting Chelsea vs Scunthorpe United on TV or Online?
Chelsea appear to have turned a corner since the arrival of Hiddink, and the Blues will be eager to show fans they really have redeemed themselves this year. If you happen to be in London, you may be heading to Stamford Bridge to see the Blues take on lower-tier side Scunthorpe United live in which should be a straight-forward win for the hosts.
If not, no worries. LiveSoccerTV has plenty of great options to catch this FA cup clash from your TV, computer, tablet, or phone. Here are some selections for fans living elsewehre in the UK and the following countries:
- In the USA at 9.00 EST on: Fox Sports GO, Fox Sports 1 USA, Fox Soccer 2GO USA, Fox Deportes
- In the UK at 14.00 GMT on: BBC Radio, BT Sport Live Streaming, BT Sport 2, BBC Radio 5 Live
- In Canada at 9.00 ET on: Sportsnet World, Sportsnet World Now
Live elsewhere? Check out our special Chelsea vs Scunthorpe United broadcast page for viewing times and options for wherever you call home.
*Note: Live broadcast data is subject to change*
Match details, result and original broadcast info
This match has ended. Below are the original Live broadcast details for this match.
Live TV coverage and streaming in United States
Live TV coverage and streaming in United States
Follow the game on-the-go
Download our iOS and Android apps to follow soccer on-the-go. It comes packed with features - live scores, fixtures, results, tables, line-ups, stats, TV schedule and much more! Sorry, no live streaming within the app.
