Scott Parker revealed he was "hugely disappointed" in his Burnley side after their FA Cup exit to Mansfield Town last weekend.
The Clarets lost 2-1 to the League One outfit on Saturday, marking the first time since 2016-17 they have been eliminated from the FA Cup by a side in the third tier or lower (1-0 versus Lincoln City in the fifth round).
That came after their stunning turnaround victory at Crystal Palace earlier that week, which moved them within nine points of escaping the Premier League's relegation zone.
Ahead of Saturday's trip to Stamford Bridge to face Chelsea, Parker expressed his dissatisfaction after Burnley failed to build on their league victory at Palace.
"I think the effort was there from the boys, but we lacked the quality when we needed it with the glorious chances we squandered," said Parker, reflecting on the cup defeat.
"Just like we were praised on Wednesday for a good performance at Palace, there’ll be criticism because of the way we played, in particular in the second half, and the result.
"We’re hugely disappointed because we saw it as a huge opportunity to build on Wednesday’s win and get some momentum going. Ultimately we fell short."
Chelsea, meanwhile, progressed into the fifth round of the FA Cup after thrashing Hull City 4-0.
Since Liam Rosenior’s first game in charge of Chelsea, the Blues have won the joint-most games of any side in Europe’s top five leagues in all competitions (eight in 11 matches).
Liam Delap, who registered three assists in their win over Hull, believes Chelsea's mentality helps them to get results, no matter who starts the match.
"There are always different reasons a team is selected – it’s rarely the same side," said Delap.
"So we’re used to it, and it’s part of football, you’ve got to adapt to that, and the best teams show that no matter who is playing, you get the job done.
"I need to keep myself fit and stay in a rhythm. That’s the same for everyone else. The end of the season is going to be really challenging, and we’ll need everyone. So it’s really important that everyone contributes and focuses when they need to."
Liam Delap provided three assists in our win at Hull City.
— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) February 18, 2026
We look at the other #CFC players to have managed that feat in the #PL era.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Chelsea – Cole Palmer
Palmer has been involved in 14 goals in his 12 Premier League starts for Chelsea against promoted sides (eight goals, six assists), and his first such match for them saw him register a goal and assist against Burnley in October 2023.
Burnley – Jaidon Anthony
Anthony has scored more goals (six), has more goal involvements (seven), created more chances (24), had more shots (30) and registered more touches in the opposition box (66) than any other Burnley player in the Premier League this season.
MATCH PREDICTION – CHELSEA WIN
Chelsea have lost just one of their 19 Premier League games against Burnley (W13 D5), going down 3-2 at home on the opening weekend of the 2017-18 season.
No team has scored in more different Premier League games than Chelsea this season (24), with the Blues’ only two blanks coming in goalless draws against Crystal Palace in August and Bournemouth in December.
However, Chelsea have dropped more points from winning positions in Premier League home games than any other side this season (15). Indeed, only in 1995-96 (20) and 2015-16 (16) have they dropped more at Stamford Bridge in a single campaign.
The Blues have lost 2-1 at home to Sunderland and 3-1 away at Leeds United this season – they have never lost to all three promoted sides in a single Premier League campaign before.
Seven of Burnley’s eight Premier League points against Chelsea have come at Stamford Bridge – it’s the highest share of points (87.5%) one side has won away against another, among teams to face each other more than 10 times.
If Burnley are to win, they will likely have to score at least twice. The Clarets have not kept a clean sheet in any of their last 23 Premier League away games, since a 2-0 win at Fulham in December 2023.
OPTA WIN PROBABILITY
Chelsea – 75.7%
Draw – 14.4%
Burnley – 9.9%