Courtesy - Sky Sports
The UCL semifinals are now set with Chelsea squaring off against Real Madrid for a spot in the coveted final.
Chelsea confirmed its place in a Champions League semifinal for the first time since 2014 after getting past Porto 2-1 on aggregate. On the other hand, Real Madrid coasted through against Liverpool on 3-1 aggregate.
After finishing the season without a trophy, the Blues have set up a thrilling FA Cup final clash with Leicester. They can now win both the domestic and European cups if they perform well in the remaining cup matches of the season.
While the Los Blancos laboured to two disappointing draws in La Liga in the last week. They do, however, have some excellent UCL history to fall back on, especially in the knockout phase.
Line-up prediction: Real Madrid have received an injury boost ahead of the game, as midfielder Toni Kroos is back in contention after missing the previous two matches due to an injury. However, the hosts will be without Sergio Ramos, Federico Valverde, Lucas Vazquez, and Ferland Mendy for the crucial game on Tuesday night.
Probable Lineup (4-3-3): Courtois; Carvajal, Militao, Varane, Nacho; Modric, Casemiro, Kroos; Vinicius, Benzema, Hazard
Chelsea, unlike Real Madrid, are not plagued by major injury concerns ahead of their trip to Spain. Mateo Kovacic, the midfielder, is the only player who is currently unavailable for selection. Thomas Tuchel is expected to make only minor changes to the team that defeated West Ham in the league last weekend.
Probable Lineup (3-4-2-1): Mendy; Azpilcueta, Silva, Rudiger; James, Jorginho, Kante, Chilwell; Mount, Pulisic; Werner
Predictions: After knocking out Liverpool in the quarter-finals, Real Madrid will look to take another English scalp when they face Chelsea in the semi-finals. Zinedine Zidane’s side will be expected to start the game on the front foot in order to take a first-leg lead in Madrid, but they will also be hoping to combine their attacking style of play with the same defensive solidarity that has seen them keep clean sheets in each of their last four games in all competitions.
Chelsea, on the other hand, has a strong defensive record in Europe this season, having kept seven clean sheets in the Champions League so far, and Thomas Tuchel’s men have yet to concede a goal away from home in the knockout stage. The visitors are expected to try to absorb Real Madrid’s pressure and look to use their pace both going forward and through their wing-backs.
We can pretty much rule out a goal fest, we predict the match to end 1-1, with the round being decided at the Stamford bridge.
Real Madrid 🆚 Chelsea
The Champions League semi-finals are here 🤩 pic.twitter.com/aVoPC9smUA
— Goal (@goal) April 27, 2021