Domestically the Blues are flying...
...but Zlatan has no time for form
Chelsea had the worst start in the club’s Premier League history. And then they got rid of the footballing equivalent of a hemorrhoid (ie, a pain in the arse) as their manager, applied some cream by installing Guus Hiddink, and now they’re sitting comfortably in the Premier League with 13 games unbeaten.
His only defeat as Chelsea manager so far came in the Parc De Princes two weeks ago. It leaves Chelsea with a little bit of work to do.
It’s not like Chelsea’s unbeaten streak has been against teams of relegation fodder. Wins over Arsenal, Southampton, Crystal Palace and yes fine, three of the bottom four, have been backed up by a against Manchester United and a win over their city rivals. If Hiddink had been in place at the start of the year, Chelsea could well be challenging for the top four.
Of course, stopping Paris Saint Germain is as easy as solving a Rubix Cube after a trip to the pub. So much so that only one team has managed to do it in 36 Ligue 1 games – Lyon, last week. With the pace of Lucas Moura and Angel Di Maria supporting Zlatan Ibrahimovic, it’s hard to see the French champions sitting back on their 2-1 advantage.
It’s been well documented that this is the third time in as many seasons that these two are clashing in the knockout stages, trading qualification the last two campaigns.
- The last time Chelsea were behind going into the second leg, they qualified. In 2014, they were beaten 3-1 in Paris, but Demba Ba (whatever happened him?!) scored late at the Bridge to put them through on away goals
- Ibrahimovic was red-carded in London last year, but PSG came out on top anyway.
- Hiddink already has a European Cup under his belt as a manager – with PSV in the 80’s
Regardless of the manager, Chelsea have missed Eden Hazard badly this season. He hasn’t shown the spark, but with the lights shining on Stamford Bridge his odds of for anytime goalscorer is too good for me not to take. Especially since David Luiz has said he is going to attack. When David Luiz attacks, bad things happen to his team.
For PSG, as always look to Zlatan to score anytime at. I can see this being a goalfest, and over 2.5 goals is also worth a punt at. I don’t want to predict who’s going to win though, Chelsea are with PSG at.
It’s going to be a very very entertaining game of football, so sit back, relax, and realize that every player on the pitch on Wednesday is earning more than your annual salary for playing!