This week has begun as the antithesis to last week in terms of excitement levels in the Champions League knockout stages. Last week saw Porto and Dortmund get through in heart-stopping fashion, while Liverpool and Paris Saint-Germain confidently dispatched other European giants. Meanwhile, during Tuesday’s second leg fixtures, both Manchester City and Real Madrid coasted to dominant wins. Therefore, it’s now up to Chelsea and Atletico Madrid to pick up the UCL slack.
The Blues and Los Rojiblancos played out a fantastic first match, which saw the visitors get the leg up—no pun intended—going into the second leg courtesy of an Olivier Giroud bicycle kick. The English outfit won the contest 1-0, giving it a crucial advantage by virtue of an away goal. The task for the second leg is simple: keep a clean sheet and the Blues are through. Luckily, that’s something they’ve excelled at under Thomas Tuchel.
The tactical tug of war between Tuchel and Diego Simeone is also something to watch. Tuchel’s teams are typically known for their gegenpressing and high-octane, possession-based style of football; while Simeone’s sides absorb pressure and hit back on the counter attack. Both squads will be forced out of their comfort zones at Stamford Bridge with the Blues protecting a lead and Atletico chasing one.
Regardless of styles, it’s set up to be a fantastic footballing bout between two of Europe’s finest. Chelsea—through Edouard Mendy, Antonio Rudiger, Andreas Christensen and Cesar Azpilicueta—have the weapons to keep Los Rojiblancos out of the back of the net. The Blues’ defense hasn’t allowed a goal since before these two sides met last time. Overall, they have kept 10 clean sheets in Tuchel’s first 12 matches. A clean sheet won’t come easy though with the likes of Luiz Suarez, Joao Felix and Angel Correa opposite the Blues’ back line. There is a reason Atletico sits atop La Liga 27 matches into the season, and those three are a huge part of that reason.
Where can you view the live stream of Chelsea vs. Atletico Madrid?
Date: Wednesday, March 17
Time: 4:00 p.m. ET (20:00 p.m. GMT)
Location: London, England
Venue: Stamford Bridge
Referee: Daniele Orsato (Serie A, Italy)
TV Info: Paramount+ (USA), BT Sport (UK)
Live Stream: Paramount+
Chelsea is looking to advance past the Round of 16 for the first time since the 2013/14 campaign, but it’ll need to play mistake-free football in order to do so. The Blues will be without four very important players in Thiago Silva (injury), Tammy Abraham (injury), Jorginho (suspension) and Mason Mount (suspension). On the other side of things, Atletico is getting a handful of key starters back, some of whom missed the first leg. Can the west Londoners stun the world, overcome their past demons and send the Spanish giants packing? Only time will tell.
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