Chelsea vs PSG Preview
Chelsea host Paris St. Germain in the second leg of the round of 16 of the Champions League, which can be said as the biggest match of Chelsea’s rather disastrous season. First leg was a close encounter which finished as 2-1 to the French Side.
This has been a close encounter between the two sides in the recent years. Chelsea will be out with revenge on their minds as the Parisians dumped them out of the competition last year.
The leg is evenly poised with Chelsea having an important away goal but PSG can’t be underestimated at any cost. Guus Hiddink said in his pre-match press conference that the players need to be angry but in a controlled manner and has warned the opponents that the blues will play in a fearless manner.
Team news:
Chelsea will miss Kurt Zouma and Pedro through injuries. John Terry may also miss out after failing to recover from a hamstring injury. The good news is that Diego Costa will return to the starting lineup after overcoming a minor tendon injury.
The only absentee for the visitors will be the Italian, Marco Verratti. Blaise Matuidi has been declared fit after missing PSG’s last match against Montpellier.
Players to watch out for :
Willian and Diego Costa have to be all guns blazing if they want to overcome the French giants. These two will be the difference between winning and losing for the blues.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic is a big match player and he will be up for the challenge. Along with him, Lucas Moura will be the player to watch out for.
Key stats:
1. Two wins apiece with three draws is the head to head record between the two sides.
2. Chelsea have scored in their last 22 consecutive home matches in the Champions League with the record dating back to 2008.
3. Chelsea are in the knockout stages for the 12th time in the last 13 occasions. They have reached quarterfinals in eight of that situations.
Predicted line – ups:
Chelsea: Courtois, Azpilicueta, Ivanovic, Cahill, Rehman, Mikel, Fabregas, Hazard, Oscar, Willian, Costa.
PSG : Trapp , Marquinhos , Silva , Luiz , Maxwell , Motta , Pastore , Matuidi , Di Maria , Lucas , Ibrahimovic.
Prediction:
Chelsea 2 PSG 1