Nobody expects Chelsea to have to travel to Madrid aboard a bus driven by Thomas Tuchel, but the coach’s offer to get behind the wheel of a coach if his club doesn’t have money for a plane illustrates well the turbulent moment that the entity is going through londoner
A year after having left Real Madrid in the gutter in the semifinals and later winning the Champions League, the draw crosses both teams again, this time in a previous round. Those of Concha Espina, euphoric after their historic comeback against PSG, will seek to repeat the semifinals -and, why not, something more- against another of the nouveau riche on the continent, recently fallen from grace.
The West London outfit is up for sale after the UK sanctioned its hitherto owner, Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich.
In recent days, the club has even run out of credit cards. It cannot even generate income from ticket sales at the old Stamford Bridge, where the first leg will be played, unlike last season where it hosted the second leg, without an audience due to the pandemic.
All this state of internal combustion has not been translated, at least for the moment, on the pitch. And in that the figure of Tuchel has had a lot to do, whose dimension has skyrocketed in a club that professed devotion to Abramovich and who has found himself an orphan after his departure.
His commitment to the team by stating that, no matter what happens, he would remain in his position, has been an injection of spirit and stability at all levels.
In Europe, Chelsea dispatched Lille with great solvency in the round of 16, winning both games, and in the Premier League they are in a comfortable third place, far from Manchester City and Liverpool but also eight points ahead of fourth-place Arsenal. .
The Blues have not lost a game since last January 15, and they are back on track after a somewhat hesitant start to the season.
The block is essentially the same one that beat Real Madrid in the tie a year ago (1-1 and 2-0), with the addition of a Romelu Lukaku who has not quite found his place in London and with whose March continues to speculate.
Meanwhile, the young “Blues” pearls continue to flourish. In the tie against Lille, Christian Pulisic especially stood out, scoring two goals in the first leg and second leg.
At 23 years old, everything is still expected from the American jewel, whom only irregularity has so far deprived of taking a step forward alongside the greats of football.
Another promise, the German Kai Havertz, already showed what he is capable of against Madrid in the last semifinals and continues on his way to stardom.
Despite everything, the soul of this team is still its captain, César Azpilicueta from Navarra, who has become a Chelsea legend and whose future is still up in the air due to an automatic renewal clause that would make it difficult for him to sign for FC Barcelona.
The ex-osaunista scored one of the two goals against Lille and will lead a committed and granite defense, which is well complemented by the hard-working and efficient midfield led by the Italian Jorginho and the Frenchman Ngolo Kanté and with an Edouard Mendy who offers full guarantees in goal.
Madrid is well aware of the physical demands of facing a team that is very well worked tactically and with lungs to spare. It remains to be seen if the problems that affect the London entity will end up affecting their sporting performance or if they will once again be a hard nut to crack for the Whites.
Source: Gestion
Ricardo is a renowned author and journalist, known for his exceptional writing on top-news stories. He currently works as a writer at the 247 News Agency, where he is known for his ability to deliver breaking news and insightful analysis on the most pressing issues of the day.
