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Three things to look for as Chelsea hosts Atletico Madrid

By Vansh Ambashta

BUCHAREST, ROMANIA - FEBRUARY 23: Olivier Giroud during the UEFA Champions League Round of 16 match between Atletico Madrid and Chelsea FC at National Arena on February 23, 2021 in Bucharest, Romania. (Photo by Stefan Constantin/MB Media/Getty Images)
BUCHAREST, ROMANIA - FEBRUARY 23: Olivier Giroud during the UEFA Champions League Round of 16 match between Atletico Madrid and Chelsea FC at National Arena on February 23, 2021 in Bucharest, Romania. (Photo by Stefan Constantin/MB Media/Getty Images) /
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BARNSLEY, ENGLAND – FEBRUARY 11: (L-R) Callum Styles and Alex Mowatt of Barnsley battle with Hakim Ziyech of Chelsea during The Emirates FA Cup Fifth Round match between Barnsley and Chelsea at Oakwell Stadium on February 11, 2021 in Barnsley, England. Sporting stadiums around the UK remain under strict restrictions due to the Coronavirus Pandemic as Government social distancing laws prohibit fans inside venues resulting in games being played behind closed doors. (Photo by Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images)
BARNSLEY, ENGLAND – FEBRUARY 11: (L-R) Callum Styles and Alex Mowatt of Barnsley battle with Hakim Ziyech of Chelsea during The Emirates FA Cup Fifth Round match between Barnsley and Chelsea at Oakwell Stadium on February 11, 2021 in Barnsley, England. Sporting stadiums around the UK remain under strict restrictions due to the Coronavirus Pandemic as Government social distancing laws prohibit fans inside venues resulting in games being played behind closed doors. (Photo by Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images) /

2. A lack of chances with possession and without possession

Chelsea and Atletico Madrid have contrasting styles as one enjoys keeping possession while the other prefers to sit back and hit on the counter. However, they both have one thing in common, and they don’t create too many chances. In the first leg, both Chelsea and Atletico created one big chance each.

With each passing game, this is becoming a concern for Tuchel as his system and forwards seem incapable of creating chances. Be it the game against Southampton or the dull match against Leeds, Chelsea cannot produce quality chances in the final third, which has let them down on several occasions. The same issue has been going on for Atletico as well, as they created only two big chances against Getafe and missed both. Despite possessing some of the most highly rated forwards globally, both teams are struggling to make an impact.

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Chelsea has kept a lot of possession under Tuchel, but the Blues have scored a limited number of goals. This issue was visible against Atletico in the last leg when Chelsea struggled to finish and needed Olivier Giroud (who is supposed to be a go-kart) to produce a moment of sheer brilliance. While Giroud rescued the Blues in Bucharest, the Blues will need a far more convincing performance at Stamford Bridge if they wish to move to the next round comfortably.

Atletico will probably allow Chelsea to keep possession again, but they will press more and attack more as they look to close the one-goal deficit first. With Mount and Jorginho suspended, Tuchel has two of his most trusted soldiers out of the game, and he will have to work out a plan to convert the possession into actual goals.

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