The 1-0 defeat they suffered there on October 23 last year was a blow to their hopes of winning the Premier League and Andre Villas-Boas' side, who are currently in fourth place, finished the game with nine men following red cards to Didier Drogba and Jose Bosingwa.
The headlines were generated by captain John Terry however after it was alleged he had racially abused Rangers defender Anton Ferdinand during the game.
Terry strongly denied the accusation, which led to a police investigation and a court case that is due to begin at West London Magistrates' Court next week.
Terry and Ferdinand are both in line to start for their respective clubs on a day when extra security has been hired by Rangers, with Ferdinand reportedly mulling whether he should shake Terry's hand before kick-off.
Chelsea chairman Bruce Buck and Rangers owner Tony Fernandes took steps to calm the pre-match atmosphere this week by issuing a joint statement urging supporters not to make any chants of a racist nature.
"Discrimination has no place in football or society," it read. "Both clubs enjoy fantastic support. However we would remind fans that, while we want to hear their passion, hatred and abuse is not what being a fan of QPR or Chelsea is about.
"The clubs will work together with the police to ensure that anyone using discriminatory or inflammatory language is identified and that the strongest possible action is taken against them."
Rangers manager Mark Hughes was confident Ferdinand, the younger brother of Manchester United and England defender Rio Ferdinand, would be unfazed by the furore.
"He has not come to me and said 'Gaffer, I need to speak about this situation' so I don't think it has affected him at all to be perfectly honest," Hughes said.
"I will speak to him only to get it clear in my own mind where he is with it all. It would be silly not to do that. I will talk to him, but I don't think it's going to have any influence on my decision whether to pick him."
Hughes does have a number of options at the back should he decide to take Ferdinand out of the spotlight as Nedum Onuoha has joined from Manchester City in a deal believed to be worth £2.5million in time for a debut.
The 25-year-old had played at City when Hughes was manager there but had been largely ignored by current manager Roberto Mancini.
"This was the right time for me to join a club like QPR," he said. "The manager obviously played a massive factor in my decision to come here. I've worked with him before and he always wants players around him who are open and honest.
"He wouldn't have come here if he didn't believe that there was a squad of players here that can achieve the goals he has. The ambition of the owners was really appealing. This is my club now and I'll give everything to help us succeed."
Source: AFP
Source: AFP