PREVIEW: UEFA Champions League – Real Madrid vs Chelsea

Real Madrid

Real Madrid find themselves second on the league table, 12 points behind their biggest rivals Barcelona who look set to secure their 27th league title. Madrid have not found it easy this term to keep up the pace in the league, however, they do demonstrate their quality and dominance in Europe.

The Champions League has reached the quarter-final stage once again with eight of Europe’s best teams to fight it out for the chance to be crowned champions of Europe. Real Madrid are no strangers to this prestigious tournament and will look to uphold their high standards and continue to validate their pedigree they possess as a world class team.

Carlo Ancelotti will know the importance of lifting silverware this season and being one of the favourites to be crowned champions again will certainly boost their confidence to go all the way. Los Blancos are a team who possess high quality players in every area of the pitch who can define big moments in the game.

Ancelotti will know his opponent very well and will look to limit their chances at the Bernabeu and take control of the game and put Chelsea to the sword.
Real Madrid will be playing in front of their home fans and will look for a dominant display against a misfiring Chelsea team.

The midfield of Luka Modric, Toni Kroos and Eduardo Camavinga are a supreme midfield trio that can influence and control the game in many ways. The incredible ability of these players leaves spaces open for players like Vinicius Jr, Karim Benzema and Federico Valverde to exploit and take advantage of.

The link up play between these players in transition from defence to attack is so detrimental to any defence, with the speed and creativity they pose in the final third, its almost impossible to stop at times.

The atmosphere will be electrifying at the Bernabeu and Los Blancos will play on the front foot to go for the win at home and take the advantage to the second leg when the face Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.

Chelsea

At the time of writing, Bruno Saltor has been appointed as the new Chelsea Interim Head Coach following the departure of Graham Potter. We can all agree that the Blues have had a season to forget, not living up to their high standards and find themselves down in 11th spot in the Premier League.

The Chelsea faithful have not had a lot of joy on and off the pitch this term as they go through this transition period within the club. It is clear to say that the transition Chelsea are in as a club have had a bad impact on their performances hence, they find themselves in unfamiliar territory in the league.

But we cannot deny their European pedigree they possess when it comes to the Champions League, having won it two years ago by defeating Manchester City in the final.

Potter was named the new manager of Chelsea after Thomas Tuchel was sacked and inherited a quality team but did not find it easy to replicate the winning formula previous coaches have had before him.

Potter did not waste any time going into the transfer market, buying a host of incredible new talent to evolve his squad and reclaim their identity as a giant in the game.

Chelsea travel to Spain in stuttering form but have all the quality they will need to maximize their chances away from home. Whoever it is in the dugout will analyse his opponent and will be cautious in his approach to the game but will also identify weaknesses and challenge Los Blancos on their home turf.

The Blues will need to be in sync with each other when they go toe to toe with the kings of Europe. Players like Kai Havertz, Joao Felix and Raheem Sterling can put any defence under pressure on their day and World Cup winner Enzo Fernandez will have to be at his best to stop Los Blancos taking control of the game.

The Blues will need to play with purpose and express themselves. Chelsea must win the Champions League if they want to qualify for next season’s competition.