Chelsea put out a solid display against Crystal Palace in the Premier League on Saturday and now they shift their focus back to the Champions League, facing FC Porto in the quarter-finals.
The Blues go into this week’s match with a 2-0 lead from the first leg and they are surely the favourites to go through to the next round especially since the English side are still to taste defeat in the UCL this season.
Porto, on the other hand, will not be giving up hope just yet since they have been in stellar form in their respective domestic league and also because they have proved that overcoming big teams is not a big task for them(they knocked out Juventus in the previous round of the tournament).
Thomas Tuchel will be eyeing a straightforward win this week despite his eagerness to make a few changes to his usual starting line-up. A few players could be rested for the second leg but given that Chelsea have won 7 of their last 8 matches in the Champions League, we expect them to be playing in the semi-finals.
Chelsea team news vs FC Porto:
Thiago Silva is properly rested since he missed the Palace game due to suspension and he could return to the starting line-up on Tuesday. This will be a big boost for the manager because Christensen is nursing a hamstring injury right now and might not be available for selection.
If Christensen is not fully fit then Silva will come into defence but if both of them are available, it will be interesting to see how Tuchel sets up his team then.
N’Golo Kante came off the bench on Saturday but the French international is likely to come back into the side, replacing Jorginho in defensive midfield. Mateo Kovacic will keep his place.
Kante was part of the Chelsea squad which beat Palace during the weekend but Thomas Tuchel has hinted that the Frenchman is not a guaranteed starter against Porto.
The manager said in his press conference: “This is now a decision I will take tomorrow morning when I see him today in training and then when we reflect on the others for the team in central midfield.”
Ben Chilwell was a scorer in the first leg and also played against Crystal Palace. Some experts feel the Chelsea boss might call back Marcos Alonso but we don’t think Thomas Tuchel will take that risk with the summer signing in such great form.
Mason Mount is an obvious starter but the same cannot be said about Christian Pulisic. The American international netted two goals vs the Eagles but those still might not be enough to get him a start in midweek. Hakim Ziyech should be coming back into the side instead.
Kai Havertz played as the centre-forward with Werner and Giroud watching from the bench during the weekend. But on Tuesday, we expect Werner to get back into the line-up. Olivier Giroud and Timo Werner could both be warming the benches again.
Stats via Whoscored.
