Real Madrid v Chelsea: Preview, Team News & Predictions
Real Madrid and Chelsea are set to lock horns for the third UEFA Champions League running, this time in the first leg of the highly anticipated quarterfinal.
The Santiago Bernabeu will host the first of two legs on April 12th, with the home side looking to continue their impeccable run of form in Europe against arguably the most out-of-sort teams across the best eight remaining in the competition.
Currently second place, 12 points behind bitter rivals Barcelona in the league, Real Madrid lost 3-2 to Villarreal on Saturday after having led twice in the game.
Their record in the Champions League makes for far better reading, as the 6-2 thrashing of Liverpool across two legs remains fresh in the minds of the Los Blancos faithful, who will be confident despite recent hiccups in La Liga.
What could motivate Chelsea is their record of just one loss in seven against the Spanish giants. Frank Lampard will rub shoulders against his former manager, under whom he lifted the Premier League title. His second homecoming as Blues manager ended on a sorry note again, with relegation-threatened Wolves bagging all three points in a 1-0 win.
He will consider this European challenge as an opportunity to pick up where he left, having been replaced by Thomas Tuchel before the Champions League knockout stages of the 2020/21 term.
While Lampard will have his work cut out picking a settled XI for the outing amidst injuries, Ancelotti will bank on his experienced stars to see out the matchup – none more than Karim Benzema, who smashed four goals against the Blues last season. Each of his last 10 goals in the UCL have been against English oppositions.
Team News
Real Madrid
Toni Kroos and Luka Modric were both rested for the Villarreal game, and the two late goals shipped indicate just how much Real Madrid depend on the control the midfield duo provide. They’ll slot straight back into the XI alongside Eduardo Camavinga and Fede Valverde to provide more legs.
There will be plenty of reunions, as Thibaut Courtois, Antonio Rudiger and the much-maligned Eden Hazard face off against their former employers.
Ferland Mendy is recuperating from a calf strain and will, therefore, miss out.
Chelsea
N’Golo Kante was closely monitored and rested against Wolves, meaning there’s a serious chance for him to play a huge role in this clash. Mason Mount was another notable absentee, and this match could come too soon as he recovers from an abdominal injury.
Armando Broja is sidelined for the rest of the season, whereas the likes of David Fofana, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Benoit Badiashile are not named in the Chelsea UCL squad.
Predicted XI
Real Madrid (4-3-3): Courtois; Carvajal, Eder Militao, Rudiger, Camavinga; Modrić, Tchouameni, Kroos; Valverde, Benzema, VinĂcius
Chelsea (4-2-3-1): Kepa; James, Fofana, Koulibaly, Chilwell;Kovacic, Kante, Enzo Fernandez; Sterling, Havertz, Joao Felix
Match Prediction
Every time they falter in the league and hit new lows, Chelsea turn up in the Champions League. But Real Madrid is a stout opponent; the entire unit from the starlets to their four-time UCL winning manager knows how to lift this trophy year on year after.
In a deafening atmosphere at Bernabeu, with no consistent goal scorers to rely upon, Chelsea will have one foot out the door after the first leg.
Predicted score: Real Madrid 3-0 Chelsea
-Akarshak Roy
Twitter: @RoyAkarshak
Photo: Daniel. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license.