Chelsea’s Champions League hopes are still very much alive. Although the Blues lost 2-1 to Paris Saint-Germain in the first leg, that precious away goal could turn out to be decisive in the second leg at Stamford Bridge. Can the Parisiens preserve their slim lead or will the Blues book a place in the last eight?
Read on below for our preview of Wednesday’s Champions League action. Meanwhile, check out our preview of the 2016 MLS season here.
Chelsea were denied a fourth consecutive win as a late goal saw them draw 1-1 with Stoke City on Saturday. Nevertheless, the Blues’ impressive run continues under Guus Hiddink. They’ve won eight, drawn seven and lost just once in 16 games under the Dutch manager. Of course, that one loss came in the first leg against PSG.
Hiddink rested his two big offensive stars, Diego Costa and Cesc Fabregas, against Stoke so expect both to be fresh and ready to go at home. Costa has been on quite a roll of late, scoring four goals in his last six games.
Stamford Bridge has been reestablished as a very tough place to visit under Hiddink. Prior to their draw against Stoke, Chelsea won their last two home games 5-1. The Blues were also perfect at home during the group stage. They won all three matches, and conceded just one goal.
Down just 2-1 with an away goal, Chelsea only needs a 1-0 win to go through. (They’re priced at +200 to move on to the quarters.) That puts them in a very good position strategically since they don’t have to go all out and attack PSG. They can maintain a compact shape and prevent PSG’s talented forwards from exploiting any spaces in behind their defense.
They will also be very dangerous in set piece situations. Willian is a free kick maestro, whether he’s shooting or setting a teammate up. Meanwhile, central defenders Gary Cahill and Branislav Ivanovic are very good goalscoring defenders, and both have recently gotten themselves on the scoresheet.
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Betting on Paris Saint-Germain
After looking downright invincible for most of the season, PSG have now failed to win two of their last three matches. Their 36-match winning run was snapped by Lyon at the end of February. And on Saturday, they could only draw 0-0 at home against Montpellier.
It should be noted that manager Laurent Blanc fielded a weakened side for that match as he rested several of his stars – namely, captain Thiago Silva, Zlatan Ibrahimovic and David Luiz – in preparation for their visit to London.
However, Blaise Matuidi and Marco Verratti missed out due to injury, and are both major doubts for the Chelsea clash. The two are integral pieces of PSG’s midfield, and their absence will be a big blow to the Parisiens’ chances of getting an away win.
But with a 2-1 advantage, PSG have the luxury to do what most away teams do in Europe – sit back, defend deep and lure their opponent in. If the Blues indeed bite, PSG have the blazing speed with the likes of Lucas Moura and Angel Di Maria, who can punish Chelsea on the counterattack.
Writer’s Prediction
PSG do just enough as 1-1 draw (+210) sees them through to the quarterfinals.
