Mandatory Credit: Scott Rovak-USA TODAY Sports
The Chelsea first team traveled to Paris Tuesday afternoon, one day prior to their Champions League matchup against French Ligue 1 leaders Paris St-Germain. Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho and defender Cesar Azpilicueta took part in a news conference in the French capital, discussing their form, their opponent, and other matters.
While PSG are well and truly the class of the French league this year, Chelsea have struggled of late to maintain a hold on the Barclay’s Premier League. In fact, the Blues dropped a crucial and heartbreaking match against Crystal Palace on Saturday 1-0, and manager Jose Mourinho has all but ruled out the possibility of winning the title this season. PSG meanwhile won their match 1-0 over Nice. The victory was their 9th in a row across all competitions, and was obtained while resting some key starters. The hosts seem to be ready to play and well rested, not to mention have a full squad to choose from. Chelsea meanwhile have injuries to Samuel Eto’o and Ashley Cole, as well as cup tied players in Nemanja Matic and Mohammed Salah that are unavailable for selection. Ramires is still serving a match ban for actions against Aston Villa, however that doesn’t apply to European matches, so he is available for selection.
Despite the poor result on Saturday, Jose Mourinho revealed his goalkeeper and back four will remain the same as it has for weeks, meaning Cechin goal behind Azpilicueta, Terry, Cahill, and Ivanovic. PSG’s offensive capabilities are impressive, with Swedish superstar ZlatanIbrahimovic up front along with Argentine Ezequiel Lavezzi and Uruguay forward EdinsonCavani. Cavani has not enjoyed a very successful first season in Paris, but the former Napoli man has played well against Chelsea before and could look to make a statement against a club that is very interested in purchasing his services for the coming seasons. PSG’s side also includes a former Chelsea player in it as well, the Brazilian centre back Alex who scored many a wonderful goal from set pieces for Chelsea during his time at Stamford Bridge.
It will be interesting and quite exciting to watch this match between two of the top clubs in Europe, especially with both Eden Hazard and ZlatanIbrahimovic playing on the same pitch. Despite the poor result at Palace last Saturday, I think the lineup will remain mostly the same, more out of necessity than choice. Luiz had a poor game in midfield, but Lampard looked completely out of place in his former role as a box to box midfielder, so we may see Luiz partnering Ramires in midfield, as John Obi Mikel has been out of favor under Mourinho. I’m picking Torres to start against Les Parisiens, however we could see Demba Ba getting a run out at the Parc des Princes, or even possibly a new player playing the No.9 role either as a true striker or the fabled “false 9” role.
Predicted Starting XI
————————Cech———————–
Azpilicueta—-Cahill—-Terry——Ivanovic
————-Ramires——–Luiz——————
Hazard———-Oscar———–Willian——–
———————-Torres————————
Prediction:
I think this will be a very tight game, and that Chelsea’s defense is better than people think, and PSG’s defense has not been tested in Europe or the league this season. I think the talents of Eden Hazard and Oscar will provide the key to unlock the Parisians defense, but that Zlatan Ibrahimovic will also provide some creativity and scoring. My prediction: 2-2 at the Parc des Princes with Chelsea maintaining a slim lead on away goals coming into the return leg at Stamford Bridge.
UTC!