Toni Kroos begin preparations for Champions League clash
The team trained at Real Madrid City as they begin to prepare for their Champions League quarter-final second leg meeting with Chelsea at the Santiago Bernabéu.
Real Madrid vs Chelsea: Line-ups
Real Madrid
Chelsea
Chelsea’s Semi-final Dream Almost Over
#1
Carlo Ancelotti’s side have one foot firmly in the semi-finals of this year’s competition and also ensured that they retained their double-figure advantage over the chasing pack in La Liga with a straightforward 2-0 success over Getafe – their eighth victory from nine in all competitions.
#2
Los Blancos have certainly proven that the 4-0 Clasico thumping at the hands of Barcelona was little more than an outlier, and only once in 10 previous occasions have they failed to make it through in the Champions League when winning the first leg away from home – Ajax still rings a bitter bell for some Bernabeu supporters.
#3
A second successive semi-final appearance is now within Real Madrid’s sights, and they have struck at least two goals in each of their last three Champions League wins on home soil, but Chelsea did manage to respond with a goal-laden showing of their own on the South Coast.
#4
In spite of their recent collapses at Stamford Bridge, the demolition job at St Mary’s represented Chelsea’s seventh win away from home in all competitions, and they have only failed to score in one of their last 15 Champions League games in which they were billed as the away team.
#5
Victory over the Blues at Stamford Bridge saw Real Madrid end a five-match winless hoodoo against the London club in European competition, and the pressure is now on Ancelotti’s men to avoid suffering what they inflicted on PSG only a few weeks ago.
DPP Verdict
Having rediscovered their golden touch against a lacklustre Southampton, Chelsea have already shown that they can breach this Real Madrid backline and will fancy their chances of doing so on more than one occasion with an attack-minded approach and no Militao in the hosts’ lineup. Tuchel’s side simply have to go for goals in the Spanish capital, but such an approach will always leave them susceptible to Vinicius Junior’s dynamism and Benzema’s brilliance on the break, and Real can nick a couple goals of their own to end Chelsea’s dreams of back-to-back European titles.
