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2025-09-23 - Lincoln City vs Chelsea
A Sports Betting Pick by Auls
Football: English League Cup Third Round
Tuesday 23rd September 2025 - Kick Off 7:45pm
This game is live on TV
Lincoln City
Establishing yourself as a solid third tier team is not to be dismissed and Lincoln City fans will be very pleased with that having seen the Club outside of the Football League for six seasons between 2012 and 2017. However, football fans are always easy to excite and the start made to this campaign will have some wondering if Lincoln City could perhaps return to the Championship for the first time since 1961.
Back then it would have been known as Division Two and the extremely good start that has carried Lincoln City into 3rd place in the League One standings will have fans dreaming of what lies ahead. The Imps have already beaten Harrogate Town and Burton Albion in the League Cup this season and the reward is a massive home tie against Premier League giants Chelsea.
Lincoln City were beaten at Wimbledon early in the season, but have responded by putting together a 10 game unbeaten run in all competitions. They were beaten at the LNER Stadium at the end of last season by Wrexham, but Lincoln City are unbeaten in 6 here in 2025/26 and have won 4 of those fixtures, including beating Luton Town 3-1 this past weekend.
Some changes have to be expected for the home team, but the fans will be making this a loud, passionate atmosphere and could almost be sensing the upset.
Chelsea
The early sending off at Old Trafford most definitely changed the flow of the fixture, even if Manchester United had made a strong start against Enzo Maresca's Chelsea. That makes it back to back tough away defeats for Chelsea to absorb, but the fans will not be very pleased if the squad are not able to progress to the League Cup Third Round.
Silverware has been picked up in UEFA and FIFA settings over the last few months, but Chelsea have not won a domestic Cup since the FA Cup in 2018. That was actually the last domestic competition won overall, although Chelsea continue to be a strong Cup team having finished Runners Up 6 times from the last 14 FA Cup/League Cup runs.
Chelsea conceded very late at the home of West London rivals Brentford on the return from the September international break and that means they have not won any of their last 3 fixtures played in all competitions. All of those have been away from home at Brentford, Bayern Munich and Manchester United, although Chelsea have thumped West Ham United in East London last month.
Robert Sanchez begins his suspension, but he will be available for the next Premier League game against former club Brighton. The likes of Cole Palmer and Joao Pedro may not be risked, but this is a squad that has had a huge amount of investment and so a strong eleven will still be selected.
Head to Head
Lincoln City and Chelsea are facing one another for the first time in over a hundred years- the last meeting was in the 1910/11 season in the second tier of English Football.
In 4 previous matches hosted by Lincoln City, Chelsea have won 2 and drawn the other 2, but suffice to say that so much has changed since last facing one another in a game hosted by The Imps in March 1911.
Prediction
After seeing rivals Grimsby Town stun Manchester United in the previous Round, Lincoln City fans will be hoping for a huge upset of their own when hosting Chelsea.
However, it is going to be a huge test for a Lincoln City team that cannot compete anywhere near the financial levels of this Premier League visitor.
Confidence will come from the fact that Lincoln City have made an unexpectedly strong start to the campaign and they are hosting.
However, Chelsea showed in the Conference League that they can make wholesale changes and still have a squad that is more than capable of winning a fixture like this one.
Domestic silverware has eluded Chelsea since 2018, but they have continued to be a club that has made a significant impact in Cup competitions. The League Cup may be the fourth priority from the four competitions entered in August, but Chelsea's strength in depth should see them avoid any upset and the fringe players coming in can just remind the manager of their worth.
The Pick :
Lincoln City 1-3 Chelsea
