Match preview

Affirming for weeks on end that his Chelsea squad were not contenders for the Premier League title, Maresca's words may finally be ringing true, even if his previous admissions were simple mind games rather than a genuine belief that his players did not have what it takes.

After winning eight matches in a row across all competitions from November 23 to December 19, the Blues have now failed to come up trumps in any of their last four, only accruing two points from the last 12 on offer in the top flight during a woeful winter patch.

Formerly irrepressible in attack, Chelsea are now found wanting in the final third and also have just two goals to show from their last 360 minutes of football, including the Cole Palmer strike at Crystal Palace that was cancelled out by a Jean-Philippe Mateta leveller in last weekend's 1-1 draw.

That London derby stalemate left the Blues 10 points worse off than leaders Liverpool - who still have a game in hand - and at risk of being leapfrogged by Newcastle United and Manchester City in the Premier League table, where an absorbing battle for the coveted Champions League places is already materialising.

However, few will expect Chelsea's top-flight struggles to translate into a shock FA Cup exit, especially seeing as the Blues have won 35 of their last 36 matches in the competition against a lower-division team, the one aberration being a 4-2 upset at the hands of Bradford City in 2015.

Chelsea's 80% win rate in third-round ties is also the best of any team to have played at least 10 games at this stage of the tournament, but minnows Morecambe head to West London still without a single fourth-round appearance to their name.

The Shrimps have therefore already matched their best-ever result in the FA Cup by making it this far for the fourth time in five seasons, having comfortably overcome Worthing in the first round before edging out Bradford 1-0 in the second phase courtesy of a Jordan Slew strike.

That success did not trigger a consistent run of results for Morecambe, who went winless in five straight games immediately after advancing to the third round, but Adams's men have steadied the ship slightly with wins over Carlisle United and Tranmere Rovers since Christmas.

The picture still looks especially bleak for the Shrimps, though, as they remain in the League Two relegation zone - four points below 22nd-placed Swindon Town with a game in hand - although they have won 14 of their 20 points away from home this season.

Such a record offers a glimmer of hope that the latest FA Cup giant killing could be witnessed at Stamford Bridge, but Chelsea and Morecambe met at the same stage of this competition four years ago, a match that Frank Lampard's Blues comfortably won 4-0.

Chelsea possible starting lineup:

Jorgensen; James, Acheampong, Adarabioyo, Chilwell; Veiga, Chukwuemeka; Madueke, Nkunku, Felix; Guiu

Morecambe possible starting lineup:

Burgoyne; Hendrie, Williams, Stott, Lewis; Jones, White; Tollitt, Songo'o, Edwards; Slew