The Carabao Cup is back with a bang - *extremely* arguably English football's biggest cup competition.
Where else can you witness the Davids of Colchester vanquish the Goliaths of Tottenham on a dank, rainy night in Essex IN SEPTEMBER, in spite of one of the worst panenkas ever taken?
Where else can you see Southampton win 4-0 in the return of the historic South Coast derby before an enraged Pompey fan punches a police horse IN SEPTEMBER? Nowhere, that's where.
All joking aside, the Carabao Cup may not have the same significance as an FA Cup win, or a Premier League, I guess, but there is one club who should adjust their attitude to give it the same weighting this season.
That club is the Blues of west London - Frank Lampard's Chelsea. Purely based on their chances in other competitions, and how seriously their closest rivals will take the League Cup, you would wager that it is their best chance of silverware in 2019/20.
As previously mentioned, Spurs are already out of the way after the lads from Essex put paid to their hopes of lifting the famous old trophy for the first time since 2008. Meanwhile, you imagine Manchester City will be otherwise occupied in their pursuit of European glory and likewise Liverpool in their perennial domestic quest.
Obviously it is difficult to predict who will knock those sides out, but Pep and Jurgen will likely opt to field the kids until the latter stages, and therein lies a risk. That should leave Arsenal and Manchester United as the only real challengers on the Blues' road to glory, and - let's be honest - they just aren't very good.
What's more, a sixth League Cup win for the club would mean the continuation of their ridiculous streak of trophy-winning in the Roman Abramovich era - bar the barren seasons of 2007/08, 2010/11, 2013/14 and 2015/16. Trophies have gladly become part of the club's identity, and continuing that modern tradition will be key to maintaining their status as a European powerhouse. It will also serve to attract a higher calibre of player when the ban is finally lifted next summer.
The Blues get their League Cup campaign underway in a HUGE, MAMMOTH clash with the TITANS of Grimsby Town of the mighty League Two at Stamford Bridge on Wednesday night, and I for one and well up for it. Up the Carabao, up the cup, let's go all the way, lads.
Source : 90min