Fresh from crushing Southampton 6-0 in the Premier League, Chelsea will be looking to overturn a 3-1 deficit in the second leg of their Champions League quarter-final clash against Real Madrid on Tuesday.
Despite racking up 58% possession and 20 shots in the first leg, Chelsea failed to make the most of the home advantage at Stamford Bridge.
😎 Ferland M̶e̶n̶d̶y̶ Mendinho pic.twitter.com/TZZRXharpR— Real Madrid C.F. 🇬🇧🇺🇸 (@realmadriden) April 10, 2022
😎 Ferland M̶e̶n̶d̶y̶ Mendinho pic.twitter.com/TZZRXharpR
Meanwhile, Karim Benzema netted a memorable hat-trick to give Los Blancos the upper hand heading into the second leg at the Santiago Bernabeu.
Following their first-leg victory, Real Madrid claimed a 2-0 win over Getafe on Saturday – thanks to strikes from Casemiro and Lucas Vazquez.
That means Carlo Ancelotti’s men have won 22 of their 31 La Liga matches this season, recording just six draws and three losses along the way.
With seven league games remaining this season, Real Madrid find themselves 12 points clear atop the La Liga table. Needless to say, they already have one hand on the trophy.
Still, the Spaniards will be desperate to win their first Champions League title since winning three in a row between 2016 and 2018.
Let’s not forget that Real Madrid have clinched more European Cup/Champions League titles than any other club (13).
As for Chelsea, they bounced back from a shock 4-1 defeat to Brentford by hammering Southampton 6-0 last time out.
Mason Mount and Timo Werner both bagged a brace, while Marcos Alonso and Kai Havertz completed the rout.
The Blues have now won six of their previous seven Premier League games. As a result, they find themselves third in the table – eight points inside the top four.
In the Champions League, Chelsea have lost just two of their nine games this season – securing six wins and one draw in the process.
Head-to-head: Following five failed attempts over the years, last week’s victory was Real Madrid’s first-ever win over Chelsea.
Across the first five meetings between the teams, Chelsea claimed three wins and two draws. All but one of the meetings produced over 1.5 goals.
Team news: Real Madrid look set to be without the injured duo of Eden Hazard and Luka Jovic for the second leg.
On the flip side, Ben Chilwell remains absent for Chelsea. Romelu Lukaku, Cesar Azpilicueta and Callum Hudson-Odoi are also doubts for Tuesday.
Chelsea have no choice but to go for broke at the Bernabeu. However, the Blues will leave themselves exposed in defence as they attempt to overturn the deficit.
Forebet predicts that Real Madrid and Chelsea will play out a high-scoring draw on Tuesday, sending Los Blancos into the semi-finals.