Cardiff City have not-so-secret weapon that can beat Chelsea to book EFL Cup semi-final | OneFootball

Callum Robinson boasts a rather impressive record against the West London club

Cardiff City are now the lowest-ranked side remaining in the EFL Cup, with only eight sides now left in the competition ahead of the final which takes place at Wembley Stadium on March 22nd.

Despite events in League One being Brian Barry-Murphy's so-called 'bread and butter', the newly-appointed head coach has only increased optimism and positivity levels at the Cardiff City Stadium as the club is well and truly in the thick of yet another intriguing cup venture.

Many would argue that it offers a distraction away from the rigours and intensity of league action, whereas the Bluebirds have firmly used it to their advantage, as they currently sit third in the third-tier standings whilst having a game in hand over Stevenage and Bradford City at present whilst playing some extremely exciting and dynamic football under the Irishman's watch.

Unsurprisingly, the calibre of player at Barry-Murphy's disposal in comparison to several divisional rivals has seen Cardiff firmly assert themselves as early-season promotion material in League One, despite the fact the standings remain extremely congested almost three months into the campaign, whilst also allowing them to be extremely competitive and tricky customers for sides in higher divisions to try and navigate past.

That has been proven by the fact that, in the past two rounds of the EFL Cup, they have defeated Premier League and Championship newcomers, Burnley and Wrexham, 2-1 away from home, with Tuesday's victory at the Stok Cae Ras also extremely significant due to the country-wide bragging rights at stake.

Cardiff were then rewarded for such efforts with a home tie against five-time winners, Chelsea, which will take place in mid-December. Undoubtedly, many will view Enzo Maresca's side as heavy favourites, but there is a secret weapon of sorts within City's ranks which could help swing the pendulum.

Despite being a part of the first Cardiff side to suffer relegation to League One for the first time in a generation, Callum Robinson still remains a firm favourite with Bluebirds supporters.

Indeed, the experienced forward is now the second-oldest player within Barry-Murphy's squad after a summer of mass turnover in the Welsh capital, and after still managing to find the net 12 times in 34 league appearances for the side which propped up the Championship last term, Robinson has already scored five times across all competitions so far this season.

One of those came during the surprise victory at Turf Moor last month, before being omitted from the recent midweek success against Wrexham in North Wales.

The 30-year-old is one of a handful of players in the squad who also has experience of featuring at a higher level, having progressed through Aston Villa's academy, before also featuring for Sheffield United and West Bromwich Albion in the Premier League.

Unsurprisingly, the vocal figure was quick to react to the fact his current employers would be welcoming Enzo Maresca's UEFA Champions League outfit to the Cardiff City Stadium just before Christmas, before his record against the Blues was spelled out by a Bluebirds-themed X account.

Remarkably, in just three appearances against Chelsea, Robinson has scored five times, with two of those being braces for West Brom during a four-point haul against the London outfit in 2020/21, which included a 5-2 success at Stamford Bridge a month before Thomas Tuchel's side won the Champions League in Porto against Manchester City.

He also netted in a 2-2 draw with the Blades in West London back in August 2019, whilst also causing Kurt Zouma to turn an equaliser into his own net.

As such, Robinson is yet to taste defeat against Chelsea in his senior career thus far, which is certainly a good omen if Cardiff are to upset the apple cart once more.

Cardiff City will hope to buck League One-themed EFL Cup trend vs Chelsea

There have been several recent instances in which a side from League One has progressed into the last eight of the EFL Cup, with Cardiff being the first side to do so since Charlton Athletic in 2022/23, when the Addicks bowed out through a 3-0 defeat to Manchester United.

Sunderland were also defeated at the quarter-final stage in 2021/22 at the hands of Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium and were promoted at Wembley Stadium in the play-off final against Wycombe Wanderers just six months later, which is a feat that wouldn't exactly be turned down in South Wales either.

However, no side from the third tier has reached the semi-final since the 2018/19 season, where Burton Albion were defeated 10-0 on aggregate by eventual winners, Manchester City.

Cardiff will hope to buck the aforementioned trend and also make it to the last four for the first time since the 2011/12 season, where they came mightily close to winning the EFL Cup altogether, agonisingly missing out on just a second major trophy after losing on penalties to Liverpool under Malky Mackay, in what was one of the most entertaining finals seen for many a year.