Real Madrid travel to London looking to reach yet another Champions League final when they play Chelsea on Wednesday. With some big names missing out, let us have a look at their team news for this titanic clash.
Domestically, the Spanish giants continued their fight for the La Liga title as they scored a win over Osasuna last weekend. Facing the Blues will be a much harder challenge, especially when you consider the London side also have an away goal from the first leg. Real need to be efficient in attack, for the full 90 minutes, in order to try and take the tie away from the home side.
Chelsea vs Real Madrid FYIs
Kick-off Time: 8:30 PM GMT, 5 May (Wednesday)
Starting XI Predictions: Chelsea Real Madrid
4 Players to watch in the UCL semis: go here
Team News: Chelsea Real Madrid
Form Guide All Competitions: Real Madrid DWDDW Chelsea WDWDW
TV in USA: CBS Sports Network
Odds: Chelsea 6/5 Draw 9/4 Real Madrid 5/2
There are a couple of players who could be returning to play the second leg. Club captain Sergio Ramos and Ferland Mendy are in contention to be part of the match day squad on Wednesday. Ramos is expected to start but the Frenchman could miss out based on his fitness assessment just before kickoff.
Raphael Varane is a doubt for this match as he had some discomfort on his right leg against Osasuna. The other players who could miss out are Dani Carvajal and Federico Valverde. The Uruguayan midfielder had tested positive for COVID and will need to get a negative test to join the rest of the squad.
Lucas Vazquez is definitely out after suffering a knee injury last month.
The visitors need to be alert defensively or Chelsea can make them pay. The first leg ended 1-1 as the Blues could not convert most of their chances. Real will need to be wary of the attacking threat that their opponents carry. And when they have the ball, the likes of Karim Benzema and Vinicius should ensure that it leads to scoring opportunities that get converted.
Though they conceded an away goal, the Spanish side are still very much in this tie and have a good chance of winning it.
If they score, it will make things that much harder for the hosts as it will draw them out of their shells. Should this happen, it will provide Real with a chance to hit on the counter, and it is an area where they excel.
As with the first leg, it promises to be an end-to-end game with chances to be had for both teams. Real Madrid, who own this competition more than anybody, is not going to go down without a fight and Zinedine Zidane will be counting on his men to step up to the challenge, like they have so many times before.
Chelsea will provide a huge obstacle, but Los Blancos can overcome it.