Tottenham's Alan Hutton, Aaron Lennon and Luka Modric will be restored to the starting line-up after missing the European match with FC Twente.
Younes Kaboul faces a fitness test on his injured hip, but Niko Kranjcar and Rafael van der Vaart are out.
Chelsea welcome back Nicolas Anelka and Ashley Cole after they sat out Wednesday's defeat by Marseille.
Frank Lampard will not be rushed back from long-standing groin and tendon problems as he lacks match practice.
There was a time when a trip to Tottenham would have been the perfect tonic for Chelsea to help them out of their rut. Not so long ago the Blues enjoyed a 19-year unbeaten run in the league at Spurs, but those days of 'Three Point Lane' are long gone as Tottenham have begun to establish a hold over Chelsea of their own.
Harry Redknapp's side have not lost at White Hart Lane against their west London rivals since 2005 and their Gareth Bale-inspired victory in April last season came perilously close to derailing Chelsea's title charge.
If the Blues are to retain their title, manager Carlo Ancelotti has to find a way of arresting their dramatic recent slump that has caught everyone by surprise. After 10 games of the season they had lost just once, scored 27 goals and conceded three times. In their last six matches they have won only once, scored a mere three times and let in eight.
Ancelotti has been bold enough to say he is genuinely worried by their form and with Manchester United and Ars*nal to come after Spurs, the heat is definitely on the normally ice-cool Italian.
Tottenham, in contrast, are flying and have taken Europe by storm, establishing themselves as the great entertainers of the Champions League group stages. This match will provide an acid test of their title credentials.
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