Chelsea beat Tottenham Hotspur this weekend but they will have no time to rejoice since they take on Bayern Munich in the first leg of the Champions League Round of 16 on Tuesday.
The Blues finished second in their Champions League group and it will be a real uphill task for Chelsea to beat Bayern Munich especially since the German outfit are unbeaten in their last six matches in Europe.
The last time these two sides met in a competitive tournament, it was in the UEFA Super Cup where Bayern Munich came out on top but this time around Frank Lampard will be really sweating over the chances of his side because the first leg will be played at Stamford Bridge and the Blues’ home form has been really bad during the ongoing season.
Chelsea team news vs Bayern Munich:
The first big decision that Lampard will have to make is for his No 1 position since for the last couple of matches, Arrizabalaga has been warming the benches and we feel it will once again be Willy Caballero who will play in goal against the Germans.
The Chelsea manager used a back-three against Spurs on Saturday but he could revert back to a normal 4-2-3-1 formation on Tuesday meaning Reece James should move to the right-back role while Azpilicueta will play as the left-back.
Marcos Alonso was sensational against Spurs but the Spaniard will at best find a place on the bench vs Bayern Munich.
Ruben Loftus-Cheek came back from a long injury lay-off to find a place on the bench in the London Derby and there are rumours that he could be fit enough to start on Tuesday.
While this will surely be a big boost for the manager but we don’t think Lampard will risk throwing him in for such a crunch match.
N’Golo Kante still remains sidelined with an injury and as things stand right now, the Frenchman is ruled out for Chelsea’s Champions League clash in midweek meaning Ross Barkley should keep his place in the starting line-up against Bayern.
Chrisitan Pulisic is another player who is ruled out while Callum Hudson-Odoi looks set to miss out since the winger will not likely recover in time from his thigh injury.
The absence of both these players means William will return to the starting line-up while Mason Mount could be deployed on the wings.
Tammy Abraham came off the bench against Tottenham on Saturday but the England international should start upfront on Tuesday meaning Olivier Giroud will move to the bench despite putting his name on the scoresheet vs Spurs.
Chelsea’s predicted XI vs Bayern Munich:
Starting XI: Willy Caballero; Rudiger, Christensen, Azpilicueta, Reece James; Jorginho, Ross Barkley, Kovacic; Mason Mount, Tammy Abraham, Willian.
