Chelsea vs Lille Preview

UEFA Champions League defending champions Chelsea will continue their title defence this Tuesday when they welcome Lille to Stamford Bridge in the first leg of the knockout stage of the 2021/22 UCL season.

After recently winning the FIFA Club World Cup in Abu Dhabi at the expense of Brazilian side Palmeiras, the Blues are vying to retain their Champions League crown and will enter this game confident of a first-leg victory.

They play the first leg at Stamford Bridge, a ground they have won their last four games and are unbeaten in 16 games at home.

Although the away goal rule has been scrapped, they will hope to use the advantage of playing at home in front of their fans to secure a massive win against the struggling Ligue 1 champions.

Thomas Tuchel will also be desperate to continue his good work at Stamford Bridge as he attempts to make it three straight UCL finals in a row. Since taking up the Chelsea job, the German has built a powerful side that is competing on all fronts.

His side have been in imperious form and have somewhat turned into a trophy magnet under the German manager as they have won the Champions League, the UEFA Super Cup, and more recently the Club World Cup.

Although they finished second behind Juventus in the group stages, they will fancy their chances of winning this game.

The hosts also will be aiming to make it six wins in a row after seeing off a stubborn Crystal Palace last weekend in the Premier League.

Meanwhile, Lille will look to cause a major upset when they travel to London on Tuesday.

The Ligue 1 champions come into this tie as the underdogs given their form this season.

Les Dogues are struggling in Ligue 1 this season and are currently 23 points off the pace in the league title. They come into this tie sitting in eleventh place in the league and with only two wins in their last seven matches.

They will relish their chance of making a statement in this tie but will find it difficult against a team that lost only one of their Champions League group stage games.

Any hopes of them qualifying at the expense of the Blues will be made even harder, given that Chelsea have only conceded three goals in their last five games.