Another successful group stage for section winners Chelsea draws to a close with the visit of southern Russian side Krasnodar, who secured a place in the Europa League Round of 32 with a 2-1 win over Rennes last week.Frank Lampard wants to see tonight’s much-changed personnel show the right attitude, gain match fitness, and collect no fresh injuries after two wide attacking players suffered hamstring ones in the past few days.

Chelsea won the reverse fixture by four goals to nil and this fixture, a dead rubber for both sides, represents an opportunity for the Londoners to improve on just two wins in seven European outings at Stamford Bridge.

A fifth Group E victory in front of a limited crowd at the Bridge would rack up the Blues’ highest ever Champions League group points tally (16), surpassing the 15 accumulated in 2010/11. A fifth consecutive win would match the club’s all-time best run that same season.

Chelsea team news

The loss of Callum Hudson-Odoi and Hakim Ziyech to hamstring injuries will be felt more keenly at Everton on Saturday than at home to Krasnodar tonight. This evening’s Group E matches are immaterial to any outcomes and ahead of that testing Merseyside trip, Frank Lampard will make wholesales changes to the starting 11 that surgically dissected Leeds on Saturday night.He has already announced there will be minutes for those deserving more time for their day-to-day displays in training, as well as much-needed rest for tired limbs as the hectic festive period looms into view.

Two starters already confirmed for this evening are Kepa Arrizabalaga and Billy Gilmour. It will be the goalkeeper’s first Champions League action since the corresponding group fixture, a 2-1 win against Lille, almost exactly a year ago at the Bridge.Nineteen-year-old Scotland midfielder Gilmour returned from a knee injury to make a five-minute cameo at the end of the decisive 4-0 thrashing of Sevilla last week, but has not started for the senior side since the 3-2 win at Selhurst Park in July.Gilmour’s participation guarantees the club’s current run of 78 successive matches with an Academy graduate in the starting 11 will continue. Other exciting youngsters could be rewarded with some involvement tonight, especially with five replacements available, and Henry Lawrence and Tino Anjorin, both 19, have been training with the first team.Anjorin, a powerful and intelligent midfielder, sampled senior football last season against Grimsby and Everton. Fast and skilful full-back Lawrence has yet to make his senior bow, but was on the bench for last season’s Round of 16 second leg against Bayern.

Only three of the 32 teams involved in the group stage have managed more goals than Chelsea’s 13: Barcelona, Bayern and Borussia Monchengladbach. Likewise, only three players have scored more than Olivier Giroud, the Blues’ four-goal hero in Spain last Wednesday who has five in the competition. Erling Inge Haaland, our former forward Alvaro Morata and Marcus Rashford are on six.Four Chelsea regulars – Jorginho, Mateo Kovacic, Mason Mount and Hakim Ziyech – are one yellow card away from a suspension. All cards expire on completion of the Round of 16.

Krasnodar availability

Krasnodar picked up their first ever Champions League victory last time out, beating fellow newcomers Rennes 1-0 thanks to a Marcus Berg goal. The Russians’ only ever European win on the road, though, came in last season’s Europa League group stage against Trabzonspor of Turkey.An early goal from Ari set the tone against Russian Premier League whipping boys Rotor Volgograd on Saturday. The veteran forward went on to complete his brace and 20-year-old inverted winger Shapi Suleymanov added a third before the break. Midfielder Viktor Claesson, a half-time substitute, made it 5-0 with two late strikes, one a penalty.Interestingly, the visitors have attempted more shots on goal than Chelsea in this competition so far, but with an accuracy of 75 per cent compared to the Londoners’ 85.

Murad Musaev had a number of key players out when Chelsea registered a club-record 4-0 victory on Russian soil in the second match of the group, but most of them are now available.

However, with all the final positions in Group E fixed, the head coach is bound to factor in Sunday’s big game at home to Lokomotiv Moscow, four points ahead in the race for European places.

The Bulls have one further fixture after that before Russia takes its winter break.

How to watch the Chelsea-Krasnodar match

This match will be covered live by BT Sport in the UK. To find the relevant broadcaster where you are elsewhere, see UEFA’s TV guide

The usual Blue-tinted coverage of Chelsea games will begin around 70 minutes before kick-off with analysis of the starting 11 and prospects for the night on the 5th Stand app, Facebook Live and the club’s YouTube channel.

Who can we face in the Round of 16?

As group winners Chelsea will be seeded in the Round of 16 draw which takes places from 11am in Nyon, Switzerland, on Monday 14 December. Seeding means the Blues will be matched with a non-English runner-up from another group and the second leg will be at Stamford Bridge.

Other than Sevilla, only Porto and one of Barcelona or Juventus have been confirmed in second place going into the final fixtures. Otherwise the berths remain vacant, with Ajax, Atalanta, Atletico Madrid, Bruges, Borussia Monchengladbach, Inter, Lazio, Leipzig, Paris Saint-Germain, Real Madrid, Salzburg and Shakhtar Donetsk among the Blues’ other possible adversaries.

New group high possible

Chelsea’s record points tally in a UEFA competition group stage is 16, but that was in the 2018/19 Europa League (the season we won it for the second time). Tonight the Blues can match that total in the Champions League for the first time.

The current best in Europe’s elite competition, 15, was achieved under Carlo Ancelotti 10 years ago. A possible full house was spoiled when a much-changed side was defeated at Marseille in the sixth game.

Chelsea’s Champions League group points totals

2010/11 152014/15 142009/10 142020/21 13 - with one game to play2015/16 132006/07 132004/05 132003/04 132013/14 122007/08 122019/20 112017/18 112011/12 112008/09 112005/06 111999/00 112012/13 10

Three goals would also equal our best-ever group stage haul, set in 2017/18, while a shutout would match the fewest goals conceded in this stage of the competition: one, recorded in 2005/06 with Petr Cech in goal.

Winter breaks binned

After a couple more league matches this month Russian football will enter its winter hibernation until February. It was always suggested the lack of a winter break handicapped Premier League clubs when European competitions resumed in February. However, as a result of the pandemic the planned mid-season breaks have been dropped this season not just in England but other top leagues.

Crowd did us proud

Those Chelsea fans present on Saturday, starved of live football, were loud beyond their number and backed the boys all the way. The players rewarded them with 23 attempts on goal and the slaying of the Yorkshire beast: it was the feeding of the 2,000.Frank Lampard said, ‘It’s amazing what 2,000 can do’ and there was plenty more praise from the Chelsea camp, and football in general, for Blues fans’ sometimes playful support of the team, and applause for taking a stand against racial inequality on Saturday.

We all want the capacity to increase as soon as is safe, and positivity about the experience can only help in achieving that goal. To join the return to the Bridge, you can enter the ballot for the next five home matches here

The latest matchday programme

For the many unable to attend games at present the official matchday programme can still be ordered, for £3.50 plus delivery.

Champions League fixtures

Teams already qualified to the round of 16 are in bold. * indicates group winnersTuesdayGroup E Chelsea* v Krasnodar 8pmGroup E Rennes v Sevilla 8pmGroup F Lazio v Club Brugge 5.55pmGroup F Zenit St Petersburg v Borussia Dortmund 5.55pmGroup G Barcelona v Juventus 8pmGroup G Dynamo Kiev v Ferencvaros 8pmGroup H PSG v Istanbul Basaksehir 8pmGroup H RB Leipzig v Man Utd 8pm

WednesdayGroup A Bayern Munich* v Lokomotiv Moscow 8pmGroup A RB Salzburg v Atletico Madrid 8pmGroup B Inter Milan v Shakhtar Donetsk 8pmGroup B Real Madrid v Borussia Monchengladbach 8pmGroup C Man City* v Marseille 8pmGroup C Olympiacos v Porto 8pmGroup D Ajax v Atalanta 5.55pmGroup D Midtjylland v Liverpool* 5.55pm