Cardiff vs Chelsea postponement latest as Met Office issue flood warnings amid amber weather warning
Cardiff City and Chelsea’s Carabao Cup meeting on Tuesday is under threat of being severely affected by the weather after a new Met Office update.
The two sides will meet in the Welsh capital in the cup quarter-final with a giant-killing potentially on the cards given their current respective standings within the English Football League.
Cardiff are back in League One this season after 22 years away following relegation last term, but have been flying high under Brian Barry-Murphy and currently sit top of the league with 41 points.
Chelsea are fourth in the Premier League as it stands, but have won just once in their last five games across all competitions amid internal doubts around Enzo Maresca’s future in charge.
They travel to South Wales on Tuesday with the chance to reach the semi-finals of the Carabao Cup for the third time in five seasons, but could see the game postponed due to bad weather.
Multiple weather warnings issued in Cardiff ahead of Chelsea clash
Cardiff have put in the hard yards to get to this point, with wins over Swindon Town, Cheltenham Town, Exeter City, Burnley and Wrexham to reach the quarter-final stage.
Chelsea, meanwhile, have had a much shorter route to the last eight, after beating Lincoln City 2-1 and Wolves 4-3 at Molineux as Liam Delap was sent off on his return to action.
Their game at the Cardiff City Stadium is under threat due to the weather in the Welsh capital, with the Met Office issuing yellow and amber weather warnings for the area for nearly the whole of Monday.
Those living or travelling locally are warned that buildings could be flooded, driving conditions could be difficult amid potential road closures, and delays and some cancellations to public transport services are likely.
While the weather is set to return to a cloudier outlook on Tuesday, there are likely to be lasting effects and supporters will have to wait for potential club announcements around the fixture.
Cole Palmer will not play against Cardiff with Maresca expected to rotate
Cardiff have lost just one of their last seven games across league and cup fixtures, but will be wary of the threat that many Chelsea players pose and the depth that Maresca has at his disposal.
The Blues returned to winning ways by beating Everton 2-0 on Saturday as Palmer netted his first goal since September to open the scoring.
Even though he is fully fit and ready to start games now, the Chelsea boss has confirmed in his pre-match press conference that Palmer will not feature in South Wales as he “deserves to be protected.”
Maresca has also confirmed that he is “going to make some changes” to his starting eleven against Cardiff, but will surely still be confident that his fringe players can get the job done against third-tier opposition.