Charlton v Chelsea: Confirmed line-ups for Liam Rosenior’s first game in charge of Blues

Chelsea travel to fellow London side Charlton in the Third Round of the FA Cup, with new Blues boss Liam Rosenior taking charge for the first time.

The Premier League side appointed Rosenior, formerly of Ligue 1 club Strasbourg, as Enzo Maresca’s successor on Wednesday, meaning his debut in the dugout comes at The Valley against opponents 31 places below them in the pyramid.

Charlton, currently struggling in 19th position in the Championship, will start the game as underdogs but, in a cup competition known for its upsets, manager Nathan Jones will know stranger things have happened.

Read on to see how the two teams line up for this one.

Charlton team news

Jones has made four changes from the hosts last outing, with Will Mannion, Keenan Gough, Greg Docherty, Sonny Carey all coming into the starting team.

Gough, Lloyd Jones and Amari’i Bell start in a back three in front of Mannion, with James Bree and Tyreece Campbell – making his 150th appearance for the Addicks – operating as wing-backs.

The returning Docherty and Carey join Conor Coventry in a three-man midfield, and Miles Leaburn partners Charlie Kelman up top.

Charlton: Mannion; Gough, Jones, Bell, Bree, Coventry, Docherty, Carey, Campbell, Learburn, Kelman

Chelsea team news

Rosenior’s first Chelsea starting XI includes eight changes from the side that lost to Fulham on Wednesday.

Filip Jorgensen starts in goal behind a back four of Josh Acheampong, Tosin Adarabioyo, Benoit Badiashile and Jorrel Hato.

Moises Caicedo captains the team in a midfield which includes Andrey Santos, with Alejandro Garnacho, Facundo Buonanotte and Jamie Gittens also starting.

Marc Guiu leads the line in attack.

Chelsea: Jorgensen, Acheampong, Tosin, Badiashile, Hato, Andrey Santos, Caicedo, Gittens, Buonanotte, Garnacho, Guiu

How to watch Charlton v Chelsea: FA Cup TV channel, live online stream

Kick-off on Saturday is at 20:00 GMT (15:00 ET / 12:00 PT). Live TV coverage in the UK is on TNT Sports 1 and TNT Sports Ultimate.

TNT Sports costs £29.99 a month through discovery+, which includes Eurosport and entertainment and is available on a vast range of devices including smart TVs and gaming consoles.

Online live streaming is available on a vast range of devices through the discovery+ app.

Charlton v Chelsea FA Cup 2025/26 stats

• Of the 71 meetings between the teams, there have been 32 wins for Chelsea, 22 for Charlton and 17 draws
• The last edition was at The Valley in February 2007, when Frank Lampard scored the only goal as the visitors won
• Charlton have been eliminated in each of their last five FA Cup third-round ties, last progressing to the fourth round in 2013/14 by knocking out Oxford United in a replay
• The teams first met in the FA Cup in the fourth round in March 1963, when goals from Jimmy Mulholland, Bert Murray and Bobby Tambling gave Chelsea a 3-0 away win
• Their second and most recent encounter in the competition was in the third round in January 1995, when Chelsea again won 3-0 through goals by Gavin Peacock, Frank Sinclair and John Spencer
• One of the most recent 11 meetings between the teams ended in Charlton’s favour, winning 4-2 at The Valley in the Premier League on Boxing Day 2003
• Chelsea have progressed from 61 of their last 63 FA Cup ties against sides from a lower division, including their last 22 in a row
• The two exceptions were away to Barnsley in the 2007/08 quarter-final and at home to Bradford City in the 2014/15 fourth round
• New Chelsea forward Joao Pedro has produced six goals and one assist across his last four starts in the FA Cup, playing for Watford and Brighton
• The Blues can complete four consecutive wins at The Valley for the first time in their history