Chelsea will need to put recent form aside this evening as they look to overcome a one goal deficit against Borussia Dortmund in the round of 16 in the Champions League at Stamford Bridge.
For however well Potter thought his side played in Dortmund they still fell to a 1-0 defeat after Karim Adeyemi’s breakaway goal following a Chelsea corner. The Blues had a number of chances on the night but yet again failed to make the most of them.
Chelsea haven’t scored two goals in a single game since 27th December (in a 2-0 home win over Bournemouth), and there task tonight will be to score a minimum of two to have any sort of chance of progressing. Keeping a clean sheet will go a long way for the goal shy Chelsea.
As for Dortmund they are in superb form currently behind Bayern Munich only on goal difference and on a run of 10 consecutive victories where tonight they’ll be looking for their 11th. So a massive task ahead for Chelsea.
Jude Bellingham, the midfield sensation, will look to dominate the midfield by which he can show his defensive qualities but also contribute in attack with his late runs into the box with the Englishmen being involved in five goals in the competition this season (the most for the German side).
Graham Potter switched to a 343 formation against Leeds at the weekend which seemed to suit the players much more compared to the 423 he had been trying unsuccessfully for a number of weeks. In the 1-0 win it was Wesley Fofana who rose highest from a corner to clinch all three points, also looking very composed and comfortable in a back three which will please Chelsea fans after the Frenchmen being bombarded with injury problems this season.
What the managers say
“We want to make sure it’s tough for Dortmund away from home in the Champions League – and we need our supporters for that,” Potter said.
“It’s a big game, an exciting game to go to the last eight – it will be a special night at Stamford Bridge.
“We’ve had some games where we could have scored more than one and we need that performance tomorrow night. We’re playing against a top team, a team that is in a good place with the wins they’ve had.”
Edin Terzić, Dortmund coach: “Gregor Kobel has been receiving treatment in Dortmund for the last two days. He has felt better every day. We will work with him and decide after the (Tuesday training) session if he can play. After this game, we want to be among the eight most successful teams in Europe this season.”
Team News
Defender Thiago Silva remains injured and midfielder Mason Mount is suspended after being booked in Germany. Reece James and Christian Pulisic are set to return and be in contention to start.
Swiss goalkeeper Gregor Kobel and Netherlands forward Donyell Malen should both be fit for Dortmund. Adeyemi has also been ruled out for the visitors after not featuring since 19th February.
Predicted lineup
Chelsea; Kepa, Fofana, Koulibaly, Chalobah, Chilwell, Kovacic, Enzo, James, Sterling, Havertz, Felix
Dortmund; Kobel, Guerriero, Schlotterbeck, Sule, Wolf, Can, Reus, Ozcan, Bellingham, Brandt, Haller
Score prediction
2-1, in my opinion I think Chelsea will come out hungry and get an early goal getting the crowd onside. Dortmund will level it on the night but then a late goal for Chelsea will take it to extra time. And then eventually penalties where I think Chelsea will make it through to the last eight. It will be a tense game with plenty of twists and turns along the way.
