TEAM NEWS:
The hosts will be without Jiri Jarosik, Pavel Kaderabek and Tomas Prikryl, all of whom are injured. The absence of midfielder and skipper Jarosik was described as "cruel" by his manager, as the former Czech international played for Chelsea seven years ago.
Chelsea captain John Terry has made the trip to Prague despite missing the weekend win over Wigan with a knee injury. The 19-man squad did not include David Luiz, Demba Ba, Victor Moses and John Obi Mikel. Luiz is suspended, Ba ineligible after representing Newcastle in the competition, while Moses and Mikel miss out after winning the African Cup of Nations with Nigeria last Sunday. Gary Cahill, who was withdrawn from the Wigan win after suffering cramp, is available for selection by interim boss Rafael Benitez. Goalkeeper Petr Cech, who suffered a hairline fracture to his little finger on his left hand at Newcastle, is in line to face his former club.
MANAGER QUOTES:
Vítezslav Lavicka: "We want to build on our performances from the autumn part of the Europa League, when we fared well both tactically and technically against strong European opponents. It will be really nice for the fans and players to come up against Petr (Cech) in his old home. We have prepared well and have a lot of information about our rivals, They are the favourites, but the group stage matches showed that we can compete with anyone."
Rafael Benitez:“The reality is that we are a team in transition. The priority is to finish in the top four or top three. After that, we have two more trophies that we can try with the FA Cup and the Europa League. In terms of flights and games it's like the Champions League, in terms of mentality, the first thought is ‘hmm, it's different’. But if you see the teams that are in the Europa League, you will see it could be quite difficult. I'm expecting that they will be focused. We will have to start thinking of it as a great competition, with good teams and we will try to do our best.”
MATCH FACTS:
Chelsea and Sparta Prague met previously in the group stages of the Champions League in 2003/04. Chelsea won the match in the Czech Republic, with the London clash finishing in a draw.
The two matches between Sparta and Chelsea produced just one goal in total.
Chelsea have played just two matches in the Czech Republic (W1 D1) and are yet to concede a goal.
Sparta Prague have won none of their last 10 clashes with English teams in Europe; losing seven.
Prague have scored just once in their last eight matches against English opposition, and in none of their last five at home.
Despite finishing third in their group, Chelsea were the top scorers in the Champions League group stages this season; bagging themselves 16 goals.
In Juan Mata’s last five games in Europe for Chelsea, he has been involved in six goals (scoring three, assisting three).
From Chelsea’s last seven games on the road (all competitions), Frank Lampard has scored six goals.
Chelsea heve won none of their last four away games in all competitions (D3 L1).
Sparta Prague haven’t played a competitive fixture since December 6th due to the Czech Liga winter break.
MATCH ODDS:
Sparta 9/2, Chelsea 7/10, Draw 12/5
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