Possible opponents for Chelsea in Champions League quarter finals

Chelsea advanced to the quarter finals of the UEFA Champions League by defeating Borussia Dortmund in the round of 16 fixture. CFC came back from a first leg one goal deficit to score twice in the second leg at Stamford Bridge and ensure their progression.

With all eight fixtures of the round of 16 culminated, the quarter final draw is set to take place on 17th March in Nyon, Switzerland. CFC will be hoping for a moderate draw as they look to go deep in the Champions League.

It is an open draw and there are no restrictions, meaning any team could be drawn up against any team. The eight clubs qualified for the quarter finals are: Chelsea, Real Madrid, Manchester City, Inter Milan, AC Milan, Napoli, Benfica, and Bayern Munich. The Blues could match up against any of the seven contenders, meaning a 2021 Champions League final rematch between Manchester City could be on the cards.

Possible Champions League quarter final opponents for Chelsea

Manchester City

Pep Guardiola’s monster team scored seven past RB Leipzig in the second leg of the last 16 tie. They are one of the most feared teams in Europe and a match up against City would mean that the Blues face the Champions of England for the fourth time this season. Graham Potter’s side has faced City thrice this season and Man City have emerged as the superior side on all three occasions.

Bayern Munich

Bayern Munich dispatched a star studded PSG in the round of 16 to progress to the quarter finals. The Bavarians will be looking to progress to the semifinals after failing to get past the quarterfinal stage in the previous two editions of the Champions League.

Bayern last faced Chelsea in the round of 16 of the 2019-20 UCL where the German giants humbled CFC 7-1 on aggregate over the course of two legs.

Benfica

Perhaps, a match up against Benfica would be seen as a considerably favourable tie for Chelsea but Roger Schmidt’s side is not to be taken lightly. Their front three of Goncalo Ramos, Rafa Silva and David Neres has 16 goal contributions.

Inter Milan

A match-up between Chelsea and Inter would probably be named the Romleu Lukaku derby. The Belgian striker is currently on loan at Inter and has the desire to continue with the Nerrazzuri beyond this season. Inter eliminated Porto 1-0 over the course of two legs to return to the quarter final stage of the prestigious tournament for first time since 2011.

Napoli

Based on their current form and fluidity, Napoli are one of the most entertaining sides to watch. They are also one of the most dangerous sides in Europe and clubs would like to avoid a well-oiled machine like Napoli. If a quarter final between Chelsea and Napoli does happen, it will perhaps be an audition for Victor Osimhen as he strongly remains linked with the Blues.

Real Madrid

The champions of Europe might be falling behind Barcelona in the Spanish La Liga but they very much come alive in the European competition. Madrid dismantled Liverpool 6-2 on aggregate to book a quarter final berth and could set up a rematch of 2021-22 quarter finals where the Los Blancos emerged as the better side.

AC Milan

Chelsea faced AC Milan twice in the group stages of UCL and triumphed over the Serie A outfit on both the occasions. Milan eliminated Tottenham Hotspur in a low scoring last 16 tie, scoring just one goal over the course of two legs. Brahim Diaz’s goal in the first leg was the only goal of the tie that was enough for Milan to secure their first quarter final berth since 2012.

Who will CFC face in the UCL quarter final?