Chelsea manager Maurizio Sarri is set to win some favour by picking new England international Callum Hudson-Odoi to start a match for the first time.
Pedro suffered a minor problem in his groin area at Cardiff, while Willian played the full 90 minutes.
Chelsea’s fanbase have become frustrated at the Italian’s limited use of the 18-year-old, who has played just 119 minutes in the top-flight this term.
Despite Hudson-Odoi starring against Arsenal in a friendly last August, Sarri insists he wasn’t ready for selection until now.
He said: “First of all, in pre-season after four or five training sessions, I realised that Callum was really a player with a very great potential. In my opinion, in that moment, he wasn't ready to play at this level.
In Pictures | Cardiff City vs Chelsea | 31/03/2019
“But during the season, he has improved and now he's ready to play. But I decided at the beginning of the season that he had to stay with us and I put him in the squad.
“So I know very well Callum, and I want him to improve more because the potential is higher. And Callum is always in my mind. In my opinion, he is our future.
"Now he's ready to play. Probably he will start tomorrow or in the next match (against West Ham).”
Marcos Alonso won’t feature against Brighton due to a hamstring problem so Emerson will play at left-back instead.
