Chelsea welcome Borussia Dortmund to Stamford Bridge in second leg of their Round of 16 tie in 2022-23 UEFA Champions League.
Entering this leg with a 1-0 deficit, Chelsea know that only a win by two goals or more would see them advance to the Quarter-Finals.
Borussia Dortmund meanwhile know that anything other than defeat by two goals or more would see them triumph on aggregate, whilst a loss by an one goal margin would see the tie go to extra time and potentially penalties.
Team News
Cesar Azpilicueta could return for Chelsea after he missed their last two matches due to concussion.
Christian Pulisic (knee) and Reece James (hamstring) could be in contention if pass late fitness tests.
Edouard Mendy (finger), N’Golo Kante (hamstring), Mason Mount (abdominal), Thiago Silva and Armando Broja (both knee) remain absent.
Borussia Dortmund will be without first leg match winner, Karim Adeyemi after he suffered a hamstring injury against Hertha BSC, in their first Bundesliga game following that win over Graham Potter’s Blues.
Youssoufa Moukoko (ankle), Mateu Morey and Abdoulaye Kamara (both knee) remain absent.
When is Kick-Off?
Chelsea host Borussia Dortmund at Stamford Bridge at 8pm GMT on Tuesday 7 March, live on BT Sport in the UK.
Stat Attack
- Chelsea lost their only previous meeting against Borussia Dortmund in the first leg, as they suffered a 1-0 away defeat in February 2023.
- Borussia Dortmund are playing Chelsea at Stamford Bridge for the very first time in all competitions.
- Chelsea are unbeaten in four of their last five home matches against German opposition in all UEFA competitions (W2, D2, L1).
- Raheem Sterling is the only Chelsea player who has scored twice at home in this season’s Champions League.
- Dortmund have won just one of their last seven away matches against English opposition in all UEFA competitions (W1, L6).
Prediction
Amidst continued speculation over Graham Potter’s future as manager, Chelsea can come into this match with renewed belief after a front-footed energetic attacking win over Leeds on Saturday, in which they displayed more intensity, press and movement than in recent weeks.
Their biggest issue though is that they’ve failed to score more than one goal in a match since the turn of 2023, which is something that they must overcome if want to win because they first simply need to score and secondly by two goals or more to stand any chance of advancing.
Borussia Dortmund meanwhile are yet to taste anything other than victory in 2023 although they beat RB Leipzig at the weekend, despite being outplayed in performance whilst managing to draw considerable less fouls underlining their discipline and ability even when not at their best.
On that note, Chelsea are probably going to need to score first and quickly push on because if Dortmund get ahead or find an equaliser at 1-0 down, I can’t see Potter’s Blues advancing to the Quarter-Finals so another strong performance like last weekend is a must.
Prediction: Chelsea 1-1 Borussia Dortmund
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