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Team news ahead of tonight's Carling Cup third round fixtures, with Joe Cole and Yuri Zhirkov set to feature for Chelsea.

(Kick-offs 19:45 UK time unless otherwise stated)

Chelsea v Queens Park Rangers

Cole and Zhirkov are set to make their first appearances of the season for Chelsea. Assistant manager Ray Wilkins has confirmed they will be in the starting line-up against their west London neighbours. A host of academy and fringe players will also be in the squad as Chelsea look to rest Nicolas Anelka and Ricardo Carvalho among others.

QPR will be without Ben Watson but can welcome back Adel Taarabt for their hotly-anticipated trip to west London neighbours Chelsea. On-loan midfielder Watson is cup-tied having appeared for Wigan in the last round but Taarabt is over the bout of mumps which sidelined him for Saturday's win at Cardiff and could be a direct replacement. Defender Matt Connolly will miss out again as he has yet to recover from a virus and fellow centre-half Fitz Hall is still out with a groin injury so Damion Stewart and Kaspars Gorkss start at the back. Tom Heaton got a run-out in goal in the previous round against Accrington but boss Jim Magilton may prefer the experience of Radek Cerny at Stamford Bridge. Lee Cook (knee), Gareth Ainsworth (hamstring) and Angelo Balanta (groin) are still on the sidelines.

Hull City v Everton

Hull are likely to make a number of changes for the clash at the KC Stadium. Veteran George Boateng is in line for a recall after three games as an unused substitute while Craig Fagan is back in contention after being dropped for the weekend loss to Birmingham. On-loan Stoke defender Ibrahima Sonko is cup-tied and the game is again likely to be too soon for knee injury victim Anthony Gardner. Youngsters Tom Cairney, Liam Cooper, Nicky Featherstone and Will Atkinson, who all played in the second-round win over Southend, could all feature.

Everton midfielder Diniyar Bilyaletdinov comes into contention for David Moyes. The Russian sat out the win against Blackburn on Sunday after suffering a groin strain helping the team beat AEK Athens in the Europa League. Moyes could freshen up his squad and new arrival Lucas Neill is available after signing a one-year deal.

Preston North End v Tottenham Hotspur

Preston boss Alan Irvine will be without on-loan Wolves defender Neill Collins as he is cup-tied. Youl Mawene looks set to be drafted back into the starting line-up alongside Liam Chilvers but Irvine remains short of bodies. Left-back Callum Davidson is ruled out for several weeks with a torn hamstring and midfielder Barry Nicholson remains a long-term absentee with a broken leg. Winger Paul Parry also tore a hamstring in the recent 2-0 home win over Swansea and is set to remain sidelined. Striker Neil Mellor was withdrawn in Saturday's victory against Coventry due to cramp but is expected to be passed fit.

Tottenham centre-backs Ledley King, Sebastien Bassong and Jonathan Woodgate are ruled out of the game at Deepdale. King (hamstring) and Bassong (head, neck and knee) were injured against Chelsea at the weekend while Woodgate may require further surgery on a groin complaint. But the good news is Michael Dawson returns from an Achilles problem. Striker Roman Pavlyuchenko (Achilles) is also sidelined while midfielder Niko Kranjcar is cup-tied.

Aston Villa v Cardiff City

Aston Villa striker Emile Heskey is a fitness doubt for the home clash with Cardiff. Heskey suffered an ankle injury after coming on as a substitute during the second half of Saturday's 2-0 home success over Portsmouth. Martin O'Neill is set to make changes and midfielder Nigel Reo-Coker could be involved after being axed for the Pompey match following a training ground spat with the Villa manager. The likes of Nicky Shorey, Craig Gardner, Habib Beye, Fabian Delph, Brad Guzan and Nathan Delfouneso may also get a starting spot.

Cardiff midfielder Stephen McPhail misses out through suspension after an appeal against his sending off in last week's win over Reading was upheld by the FA of Wales. Manager Dave Jones is set to ring the changes and give his fringe players a run-out, with Peter Enckelman, Gabor Gyepes and Tony Capaldi expected to feature. Adam Matthews could make a return to the squad if he recovers from a groin problem in time, and fit-again Riccy Scimeca will be pressing for a start against his old club after his return at the weekend. Striker Ross McCormack has suffered a setback in his recovery from a hamstring injury and will miss out, meaning youngster Josh Magennis could come into the attack to partner Jay Bothroyd or Michael Chopra.

Manchester United v Wolverhampton Wanderers (20:00)

Michael Owen's reward for his dramatic Manchester derby match-winner is set to be a place in United's starting line-up as they begin their Carling Cup defence at Old Trafford. Owen has started just one game so far this term but is set to double that tally with Sir Alex Ferguson poised to make huge changes to the side that began Sunday's amazing victory over City. Tomasz Kuszczak is set to take over in goal from Ben Foster while Wes Brown should take a central defensive berth alongside Jonny Evans.

Wolves could hand starts to winger Michael Kightly and striker Sylvan Ebanks-Blake. The duo made their comebacks from injury as substitutes against Fulham on Sunday and are pressing to start at Old Trafford. England Under-21 international Kightly had been sidelined since March by hip and foot problems while Ebanks-Blake strained his hamstring on the opening day of the season against West Ham. Boss Mick McCarthy could also give a first start to striker Stefan Maierhofer following his recent £1.8million move from Rapid Vienna.

Manchester City v Fulham (20:00)

Martin Petrov could make his first start of the season for City. Boss Mark Hughes is still without Emmanuel Adebayor through suspension and long-term injury victims Robinho (ankle), Roque Santa Cruz (knee), Vincent Kompany (toe) and Michael Johnson (abdominal). Carlos Tevez came through the Manchester derby without aggravating a knee problem suffered on international duty but he could stand down, with Hughes needing the South American at full fitness for Monday's encounter with West Ham.

Fulham manager Roy Hodgson is set to revert back to the second-string squad that drew 1-1 with CSKA Sofia in the Europa League last Thursday night after making 10 changes for Sunday's defeat at Wolves. Simon Davies, Jonathan Greening and Diomansy Kamara are all likely to get another chance to press their claims from the start after appearing off the bench at Molineux.

Follow full live text commentary of Manchester United v Wolves and Preston v Tottenham, plus live goal comments of all the rest of tonight's action ,from 19:45 UK time!

PA Sport