Manchester United will attempt to ease the pressure on under-fire head coach Michael Carrick against a Chelsea side who lost in the EFL Cup on Wednesday.

BBC Sport examines some of the key themes ahead of their meeting at Stamford Bridge on Saturday (12:30 GMT).

Chelsea's elimination from the League Cup against Liverpool on Wednesday night was a disappointing return to Anfield for both manager Xabi Alonso and midfielder Jordan Henderson.

Former Liverpool captain Henderson did score during the unsuccessful shootout and while the result against a home team featuring seven changes may have been deflating, the result does allow Chelsea to focus solely on Premier League football until the FA Cup third round begins in January.

While the likes of Manchester City, Arsenal and Liverpool must contend with European football in addition to domestic games, Chelsea's comparatively lighter schedule could provide the opportunity to climb the Premier League table.

And being able to focus on league matches and one cup competition by this stage of the season has been a good omen in the past. The last time Chelsea were eliminated from the EFL Cup prior to the quarter-finals and were not involved in Europe, they won the title.

Alonso will want to arrest his poor playing record against Manchester United, with the former Liverpool midfielder losing five of the seven Premier League meetings, his joint-most defeats against any opponent along with Chelsea.

His most recent game against United as a player was in a 2-1 win with Real Madrid at Old Trafford in March 2013, when Michael Carrick played the full 90 minutes for the home team.

The Manchester United boss will be in charge at Stamford Bridge on Saturday despite a run of eight games without a win in all competitions. Captain Bruno Fernandes could also feature after "clear-the-air talks" with his head coach.

Fernandes was dropped for the home defeat to Bournemouth after criticising Carrick's tactics in the Champions League loss at Como, but the Portugal international's influence and ability will probably be needed if United are to alter their downward trajectory.

The Red Devils have won only 29% of their 17 Premier League games without Fernandes starting since he joined from Sporting Lisbon in 2020, in comparison to winning 49% of 233 when he does start.

Even if the manager-captain row has been resolved to the point of Fernandes returning to the team, wholesale improvement across the board is also necessary with United facing the prospect of failing to win nine matches in a row for the first time since 1988.

Carrick could be boosted by the return of Kobbie Mainoo, who returned to training earlier this week following two weeks out injured, while Harry Maguire could make his 300th Premier League appearance in this match.

Maguire is one of only three United players to have played every minute so far this season, along with Senne Lammens and Bryan Mbeumo.