Chelsea are winless in their last three Premier League matches and are now preparing to welcome Manchester United to Stamford Bridge on Saturday.
The Blues will host the Red Devils this weekend and, following a 3-0 hammering against the blue half of Manchester last time out, know they must put in a better performance.
Now seven points off Aston Villa, Chelsea's hopes of finishing in the top four are all but gone, but with Champions League qualification still a possibility, Liam Rosenior will be demanding his players keep their levels up.
And although Manchester United suffered a 2-1 home defeat to rivals Leeds United last time out, Michael Carrick's men won't roll over, but their chances of getting a result have been dealt a significant blow and Chelsea must capitalise.
Harry Maguire ruled out of Manchester United's trip to Chelsea
The Red Devils will be without Lisandro Martinez after the Argentine centre back was shown a red card on Monday for pulling Dominic Calvert-Lewin's hair.
There will also be no Matthijs de Ligt and Patrick Dorgu. The pair are still out injured and Michael Carrick's defensive crisis has somehow got even worse.
The FA have confirmed they've extended Harry Maguire's ban by a further match following his red card against Bournemouth last month.
According to BBC Sport, the 33-year-old has been charged with improper conduct for something he said to fourth official Matt Donohue.
Given Maguire and Martinez's suspensions, as well as De Ligt's injury, Carrick's options at the back are severely limited.
The United boss has Ayden Heaven and Leny Yoro as his only natural centre backs; neither have been overly impressive this season and certainly not when paired together.
No excuses not to take all three points
Chelsea lost this fixture earlier in the season. September's reverse tie saw the Blues suffer a 2-1 away defeat but surely Rosenior will fancy his side's chances more this weekend.
Even though the Blues have lacked that cutting edge in the final third, Saturday's opposition's inevitable makeshift defence will leave the home team with no excuses when it comes to finding the back of the net; something they've failed to do in all of their last three league games.
Rosenior may name a balanced side, but after learning Maguire is also unavailable, the 41-year-old may be tempted to go for a more attacking approach.
Regardless of how Carrick lines his Manchester United side up, one thing is for sure, the Blues will not get a better chance to beat a top three side all season. They must take it and build momentum ahead of their FA Cup semi final against Leeds United later this month.
Add us as a preferred source on Google