'Cup tie is best preparation'.

CHELSEA striker Olivier Giroud reckons that his side's trip to Anfield tomorrow is the best possible preparation for his side's Premier League clash with Liverpool at Stamford Bridge three days later.

The clubs meet in the Carabao Cup third round before they both put their unbeaten records in the Premier League on the line at the weekend.

The first match will be the pair's eighth meeting in the League Cup with six of those clashes coming since the Millennium to establish a modern rivalry between sides who have also had memorable meetings in both the Champions League and FA Cup.

Currently honours are even in the League Cup encounters with three wins apiece and a draw but with this week's game having to be decided on the night - the game will go straight to penalties after 90 minutes if the scores are level - that will soon change.

Both Jurgen Klopp and his counterpart Maurizio Sarri are expected to shuffle their packs but Giroud believes the cup game provides the chance to strike a potential psychological blow before their next meeting in London.

Speaking in the Evening Standard he said: "They will provide a real test of how good we are. The coach will obviously make some changes for the League Cup tie, but we have many players with quality.

"We want to be strong and show them that it won't be easy for them at Anfield. We want to keep the confidence high and come back to London with good momentum and start a winning run.

"The League Cup match is going to be the best preparation for the Premier League game. We're going there to win, we're not just focusing on the other one."