Chelsea will be looking to overturn a 1-0 deficit when they welcome Borussia Dortmund to Stamford Bridge for the second leg of their Champions League round of 16 tie on Tuesday.
Despite racking up 21 shots and 53% possession in the first leg,Chelsea failed to find a way through and were made to pay when Karim Adeyemi gave Dortmund the lead on 63 minutes.
Sheer determination. 💪 pic.twitter.com/qFy4Zd1Gh8— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) March 5, 2023
Sheer determination. 💪 pic.twitter.com/qFy4Zd1Gh8
Can Graham Potter’s men turn the tie around on home soil? Or will the German club book their place in the quarter-finals? It’s time to take a closer look at both sides.
Let’s start with the hosts, Chelsea, who ended a run of six games without a win by defeating Leeds United 1-0 on Saturday.
Following a three straight draws, the Blues suffered three successive defeats without scoring, so last weekend’s triumph over Leeds came at just the right time.
It is worth noting, however, that Chelsea have only managed to win two of their previous 12 matches across all competitions, recording four draws and six losses along the way.
On top of that, Potter’s men have scored just two goals in their past seven outings, so they could struggle to find the back of the net on Tuesday.
As for Borussia Dortmund, they claimed an impressive 2-1 victory over RB Leipzig last time out – despite seeing just 38% possession on home soil.
Consequently, BVB find themselves joint-top of the Bundesliga table with Bayern Munich, having won each of their previous eight league matches.
To put things into perspective, Chelsea occupy 10th place in the Premier League standings – 19 points behind table-topping Arsenal.
Dortmund have also won each of their last 10 matches across all competitions, with just two defeats coming in their previous 18 encounters.
Head-to-head: Chelsea and Borussia Dortmund met for the very first time in last month’s first leg, meaning BVB boast a 100% record in this fixture so far.
Chelsea (21) and Dortmund (14) produced a combined total of 35 shots at Signal Iduna Park, yet they only managed to dish up a solitary goal between them.
Team news: Chelsea’s extensive injury list includes Thiago Silva, Edouard Mendy, Armando Broja and N’Golo Kante, while Christian Pulisic, Reece James, Mason Mount and Cesar Azpilicueta are doubts.
Dortmund have multiple injury absentees of their own, including Gregor Kobel, Donyell Malen, Karim Adeyemi, Julien Duranville, Youssoufa Moukoko, Abdoulaye Kamara and Mateu Morey.
Given Chelsea’s struggles in front of goal in recent times, Potter’s men could struggle to turn the tie around on Tuesday.
With that in mind, Forebet predicts that Chelsea and Borussia Dortmund will repeat the score of the first leg, with BVB advancing via another clean-sheet victory.