Last season will be rightly remembered as one of Chelsea's finest, when a maiden league title under Carlo Ancelotti was quickly followed by an FA Cup triumph over Portsmouth in the Wembley.
After victories over Stoke City in the quarter-final and Aston Villa in the semi-final, a goal from Didier Drogba after Kevin Prince Boateng missed a penalty was enough to seal victory for the Blues and secure a historic league and couple Double for Ancelotti.
For Ipswich on the other hand, the story was much different as their last cup campaign ended in the fourth round after Roy Keane's side were knocked out 2-1 by League One outfit Southampton.
Previous Meetings
The clubs last met in the FA Cup in January 2009, this time in the fourth round where a brace of goals from Michael Ballack and one from Frank Lampard were enough to secure victory for Chelsea over the Tractor Boys.
The Blues are on a nine-match unbeaten run against Ipswich, who last beat them in any competition in 1993, and at Stamford Bridge back 31 years ago. The home side also boast a 100% winning streak in the FA Cup against the Championship outfit, with wins in 1968, 1979 and 2009 - all their victories coming at home.
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Chelsea
With manager Carlo Ancelotti under increasing pressure to turn things around for the champions after a poor run of results has sent his team tumbling out of the Champions League places, the Italian has other possible headaches leading into this cup tie.The home team face an anxious wait over the fitness of key players Ashley Cole, Didier Drogba and Michael Essien, who will all take late fitness tests after Cole and Essien picked up knocks in the defeat at Wolves and Drogba injured himself in training.
The FA Cup holders, playing their first game in defence of the trophy, are also without long-term absentees John Mikel Obi, Yuri Zhirkov and Yossi Benayoun, and are likely to field a mixture of first-team players and youngsters against the Championship outfit. That means Ancelotti may include young striker Daniel Sturridge, who scored five goals in a recent reserve team outing.
Possible Starting XI: Turnbull, Ferreira, Ivanovic, Terry, Bruma, McEachran, Lampard, Ramires, Sturridge, Anelka, Kalou.
Ipswich
The Tractor Boys go into this game managed by caretaker manager Ian McParland after the sacking of Roy Keane following a run of form which has seen Ipswich pick up just one win in nine games and tumble to 19th place, on the fringe of the Championship relegation zone.McParland will also be without three key players for his first game in charge. Midfielder Jack Colback has been recalled by parent club Sunderland following his loan spell, striker Rory Fallon is cup-tied after playing for Plymouth in the cup earlier in the season, and midfielder Grant Leadbitter is suspended following his sending off against Nottingham Forest.
Despite receiving clearance to play in the Cup from his parent club, Tottenham midfielder Jake Livermore also misses out due to a groin injury, though McParland admitted on-loan defender Darren O'Dea is "90% certain" to receive permission to play from parent club Celtic.
Possible Starting XI: Fulop, Delaney, McAuley, Brown, O'Dea, Norris, Edwards, Kennedy, Peters, Wickham, Scotland.
Prediction
Given the perversity of the footballing fates, especially when a team have just sacked their manager and their opponents' boss is seemingly clinging on to his job by a thread, Stamford Bridge might just be the scene of a huge FA Cup upset on Sunday.
Yet even in their current form, with the Double champions unrecognisable from the side that started the season with such swagger, the head says Chelsea cannot stumble at home to struggling Ipswich. It's true that the Tractor Boys, massive underdogs, have nothing to lose and everything to gain as they seek temporary rspite from their Championship travails.
But equally, beleaguered Chelsea will see this fixture as the perfect opportunity to regain their composure, re-establish their authority and rekindle their season. Ipswich, suddenly uninhibited and with points to prove to their caretaker boss, may pose the Blues problems, but expect quality to reassert itself and Chelsea to progress.
Yet even in their current form, with the Double champions unrecognisable from the side that started the season with such swagger, the head says Chelsea cannot stumble at home to struggling Ipswich. It's true that the Tractor Boys, massive underdogs, have nothing to lose and everything to gain as they seek temporary rspite from their Championship travails.
But equally, beleaguered Chelsea will see this fixture as the perfect opportunity to regain their composure, re-establish their authority and rekindle their season. Ipswich, suddenly uninhibited and with points to prove to their caretaker boss, may pose the Blues problems, but expect quality to reassert itself and Chelsea to progress.
