Middlesbrough vs Chelsea LIVE: Carabao Cup semi-final team news, line-ups and more tonight

Mauricio Pochettino warned his Chelsea players they must be “clever” in playing without VAR when they meet Middlesbrough in Tuesday’s Carabao Cup semi-final first leg at the Riverside.

Stadiums outside of the Premier League are typically not fitted with the technology required for the video assistant referee and so Pochettino’s side will take on Championship Boro with only the on-field officials in place.

Pochettino said his players must prepare to be cautious in the face of unfamiliar circumstances: “There’s no VAR,” he said. “That is a thing we need to be careful of. Our normal attitude is to play with VAR. We need to be cautious of that.

“We need to be in a different way in our approach. We need to change. Now, it’s just the referee that is going to decide, we need to be cautious. It’s a different game whether you play with or without VAR. I don’t say it’s better or worse, but it’s a different game. We need to be clever in this way.”

Chelsea are looking to put one foot into their first major final since they won the World Club Cup in 2021, months after lifting the Champions League trophy in Porto.

In other news tonight, Tottenham have just signed former Chelsea forward Timo Werner on loan from RB Leipzig until the end of the season.

Spurs have the option to make the loan permanent in the summer, for a fee of around £15m.

Jonny Howson comes in for Middlesbrough, with Michael Carrick having both Matt Crooks and Emmanuel Latte Lath selected to lead the line.

Mauricio Pochettino makes three changes and goes strong at the Riverside. In come Thiago Silva, Conor Gallagher and Noni Madueke, who joins at attacking line-up that includes Raheem Sterling and Cole Palmer.

Middlesbrough team to face Chelsea:

Glover; Van den Berg, Fry, Engel, Jones; Howson, Barlaser, Hackney, Bangura, Crooks; Latte Lath

Chelsea team to face Middlesbrough:

Petrovic; Gusto, Disasi, Silva, Colwill; Caicedo, Fernandez, Gallagher; Madueke, Palmer, Sterling

Team news will be dropping in a few minutes – and the big question is who will lead the line for Chelsea tonight with Christopher Nkunku injured and Nicolas Jackson away at the Africa Cup of Nations.

It could be a big night for Armando Broja…

Chelsea star Cole Palmer has named his ultimate five-a-side team. The midfielder avoided picking himself, instead naming three former Manchester City teammates alongside goalkeeper James Trafford and Blues defender Thiago Silva.

John Stones takes his place in the side, as Palmer describes him as “an amazing player and a great person”, with Kevin De Bruyne and Erling Haaland completing the impressive line-up.

Middlesbrough manager Michael Carrick ahead of facing Chelsea in the Carabao Cup semi-finals:

“It’ll be huge. For the fans, come and enjoy it. Come and be loud. Hopefully, it’ll be a special night – we’ll enjoy it and embrace it.

“We’ve come this far and it’s an unbelievable opportunity.”

On the club’s previous victory in the competition in 2004: “It was a major part of the history of the club and a massive success.

“So I’m fully aware of what that means to the supporters and so many people connected to the club, so again that’s what you can achieve if things come together.”

The Carabao Cup semi-finals will be played without VAR, with only the final of this season’s competition utilising video technology to aid the on-field officials.

The VAR system was not used in the earlier rounds of the Carabao Cup as not all sides in the competition have access to the technology.

That situation remains in place for the semi-finals due to the presence of Middlesbrough in the last four, with the system not installed at the Championship club’s Riverside Stadium.

A statement from the EFL said: “Given the system is not installed at one of the participating semi-finalist Clubs and to maintain fairness and consistency, VAR technology will not be used in the Carabao Cup semi-final stage this season.

“This is in line with previous rounds of this season’s competition when at some grounds, but not all, VAR has been available. VAR is installed at Wembley Stadium and as per our previous commitment VAR will be used in February’s final.”

Route to the semi-finals: Chelsea

2nd round: Chelsea 2-1 Wimbledon

3rd round: Chelsea 1-0 Brighton

Fourth round: Chelsea 2-0 Blackburn

Quarter-finals: Chelsea 1-1 Newcastle (Chelsea won 4-2 on pens)