Chelsea football club are expected to perform a miracle later tonight, April 12, 2022, at 20:00 when they face Real Madrid at the Bernabéu.
Real Madrid stunned Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Wednesday, April 6 by defeating the Premier League club 3-1 in the first leg of the UEFA Champions League quarter-final round.
The defeat came after Chelsea recorded a 1-4 defeat at the hands of Brentford in a Premier League game on April 2, 2022.
After the two successive defeats, Chelsea went on to beat Southampton 6-0, two days before they flew to Spain to take on Real Madrid in the second leg of the UEFA Champions League quarter-final round.
The Premier League club are expected to beat Real Madrid 3-0 to automatically qualify for the semi-final stage of the tournament.
Unfortunately, the club traveled to Spain without their most expensive striker, Romelu Lukaku who is currently battling an achilles injury.
Also, Ross Barkley did not travel with the reigning UEFA Champions League winners but Cesar Azpilicueta who missed Chelsea’s 6-0 win over Southampton due to covid-19 infection is back and ready to play a part in the team.
What are Chelsea’s antecedents in overturning results in the UEFA Champions League
Chelsea are not new to situations like this as far as the UEFA Champions League is concerned. They have always found a way to stun the world of football with unbelievable performances in the Champions League.
Their unprecedented determination in the competition have helped them to win the tournament two different times as underdogs, first in 2012 and second in 2021.
But when it comes to overturning results in the Champions League, the Premier League club has done that in extraordinary circumstances. The first time the Premier League club overturned a heavy defeat as the 3-1 defeat they suffered at the hands of Real Madrid was in the 2011-2012 season.
Recall that in the aforementioned season, Chelsea traveled to Italy to take on Napoli in the round of 16 stage of the Champions League, the Premier League side suffered a stunning 3-1 defeat.
But when Napoli visited Stamford Bridge for the return leg, Chelsea beat them 4-1 to overturn the result and went on to win the Champions League title for the first time in their history.
Another instance Chelsea found themselves in such a tight corner was in the 2013-2014 season. in the aforementioned season, the Premier League side traveled to France to take on Paris Saint Germain for the first leg of the Champions League quarter-final round.
Unfortunately for the visitors, they returned to England with a massive 3-1 defeat. But when PSG came to the Stamford Bridge for the return leg, Chelsea defeated them 2-0, and the Premier League side qualified based on away goals rule.
Since the away goals rule is no longer applicable this time around, all Chelsea need to do is to beat Real Madrid 3-0 at the Bernabéu to stand a chance of playing in the semi-final stage of the Champions League this season.
Full of belief and desire! 👊#UCL
— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) April 11, 2022
Can Chelsea qualify ahead of Real Madrid?
It will be difficult for Chelsea to overturn the 3-1 defeat they suffered at the hands of Real Madrid. But the club will give the Spanish giants a big scare.
In the previous scenarios in which Chelsea overturned 3-1 defeats to qualify for the next round of the UEFA Champions League, the Premier League club suffered the defeats away from home. It was when the victorious clubs visited Stamford Bridge for the return leg that the Premier League club overturned the scoreline.
But this time around, Real Madrid defeated the Premier League side at Stamford Bridge and the club is expected to overturn the scoreline at the Bernabéu which looks almost impossible.
The possibility that Chelsea will overturn the 3-1 defeat they suffered in the first leg is so slim that the club’s coach, Thomas Tuchel admitted that it would be difficult to overturn it.
But it has happened in the history of the Champions League that PSG visited Old Trafford in the 2018-2019 season and defeated Manchester United 2-0 in the first leg of the Champions League knockout stage. When Manchester United visited Paris for the return leg, Manchester United beat PSG 3-1 to overturn the 2 goals deficit for the first time in the history of the tournament.
Hence, Chelsea are expected to be the second club in the history of the competition to overturn two goals deficit. If FC Barcelona could beat Real Madrid 4-0 at the Bernabéu on March 20, 2022, then Chelsea can do something close to that.
But realistically, Chelsea’s UEFA Champions League journey for the 2021-2022 season will end tonight unless Thomas Tuchel and his boys prove us wrong.
Squad. 🔵#UCL pic.twitter.com/8vRRLIEcnE
— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) April 11, 2022
