Real Madrid vs Chelsea LIVE: N’Golo Kante starts in a 3-5-2 as Frank Lampard looks to inspire Blues side to a famous result in the first leg of Champions League quarter-final
Follow Sportsmail’s live blog for the first leg of the Champions League quarter-final between Real Madrid and Chelsea.
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Carlo Ancelotti has been pictured giving his famous eyebrow raise as he makes his way to the home dressing room.
That can only mean one thing – it’s a big Champions League night.
Silva only returned to full training at the start of the week after being out of action since February due to injury.
Chelsea will need all of his experience to cope with Benzema and co. tonight.
What a boost this is for Chelsea.
Thiago Silva is back and goes straight into the starting line-up for the Blues who look set to play a 3-5-2.
N’Golo Kante also starts alongside Enzo Fernandez and Mateo Kovacic in midfield.
Your Chelsea! 🔵#UCL pic.twitter.com/IcN5ciolqy
Chelsea’s players have turned up at the Bernabeu and are having a walk around the pitch.
Less than 90 minutes until kick-off and their team news is imminent…
In the building! 👋 #UCL pic.twitter.com/VpO17QW6Ne
Lampard has pretty much a fully-fit squad to choose from. Who will he pick for tonight’s huge match at the Bernabeu?
We should find out in the next 15 minutes or so…
It’s the team many expected for the hosts with Eduardo Camavinga lining up at left back due to an injury to Ferland Mendy.
Fede Valverde will play in a midfield three alongside Toni Kroos and Luka Modric, while Madrid have a very strong front three consisting of Rodrygo, Vinicius Jnr and Karim Benzema.
📋✅ ¡Nuestro 𝗫𝗜 inicial!
🆚 @ChelseaFC_Sp#UCL pic.twitter.com/UBekIa10XO
Chelsea are set to wait until the summer to appoint their next permanent manager, with Julian Nagelsmann and Luis Enrique in the mix to replace Graham Potter.
But Simon Jordan cannot understand why Todd Boehly has gone back to Lampard instead of making a long-term appointment now, and has used his column to question the logic behind the decision.
Lampard has only just returned to Chelsea but has already identified Enzo Fernandez as a potential leader in his squad.
Will the World Cup winner play a decisive role for his team tonight?
Chelsea look to be up against it heading into tonight’s match, but owner Todd Boehly believes they’ll pull off a shock result and has predicted his team will beat Real Madrid 3-0!
We don’t have to wait too much longer to find out if he’ll be proved right.
The countdown continues! Tonight’s big game is now just three hours away, and we’ll soon find out whether Lampard can inspire his side to a famous and much-needed result.
Before then, we’ll continue our build-up to the game – and bring you the eagerly-anticipated team news!
Chelsea managers who’ve come into the club mid-season – or on an interim basis like Lampard – have masterminded a significant chunk of their European successes.
Certainly when Roman Abramovich was owner, the gamble of a sacking halfway through the campaign often had the desired effect and silverware swiftly followed.
And hhead of the Champions League quarter-final, Lampard will only hope and pray the stars align for him in a similar manner to his predecessors below.
So, can Lampard follow in the footsteps of Tuchel and Di Matteo?
Our reporter Pete Jenson has previewed tonight’s game, and he has some words of encouragement for Chelsea fans.
For all the pessimism surrounding Chelsea’s Champions League quarter-final against Real Madrid there are reasons to be optimistic going into their biggest game of the season. If Frank Lampard’s team can take some pointers from the way Villarreal played against Madrid on Saturday and not repeat the mistakes Barcelona made in last week’s Spanish Cup semi-final second leg then they have a chance.
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Both sides last met in 2022, where the Blues won 3-2 – with Mason Mount, Antonio Rudiger and Timo Werner all scoring in the Champions League quarter-final second leg.
Despite the victory, Chelsea were dumped out of the competition after losing 6-2 on aggregate.
A Karim Benzema hat-trick in the first leg gave Los Blancos a 3-1 lead heading into the second match at the Santiago Bernabeu.
It’s now just over six hours until Frank Lampard’s Chelsea get underway away against Real Madrid in their crunch Champions League encounter.
The Blues have endured a torrid season, with even a Europa League spot looking unlikely with eight league games left to play.
A heavy defeat would be a disaster for Chelsea this evening. A win and then progression to the semi-finals, however, would justify the decision to sack Graham Potter and bring in Lampard.
A number of Chelsea fans would love to have Thomas Tuchel back in charge but, even despite their 3-0 defeat to Man City on Tuesday, he seems to be loving life with Bayern Munich.
‘I was very proud of how we played,’ he said of the loss. ‘We were courageous. I kind of have a crush on this team.
‘It is going to be a big task to turn this tie around but we are not giving up. Obviously everyone is disappointed because it did not feel like a 3-0.’
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Chelsea have reportedly launched an operation to sign Gavi from Barcelona this summer, with the 18-year-old midfielder potentially available on a free.
The Blues are said to have held talks with Gavi’s representatives already, with Barcelona unable to register him as a first-team player.
That’s because of the Spanish giant’s ongoing financial struggles.
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Arsenal and Chelsea have been left in the dark and their furious supporters vowing to call on London Mayor Sadiq Khan after the Met Police ordered the rearrangement of their upcoming clash at short notice.
The game that was originally due to take place at 5.30pm on Saturday April 29 will now take place a few days later on Tuesday May 2, kicking off at 8pm, with fans labelling the alteration an example of them being ‘treated with complete contempt.’
A date and time for the London derby had already been arranged in February following talks between broadcasters Sky and the Safety Advisory Group which includes the Premier League, both clubs, the police and local authorities.
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Sportsmail has named our combined XI – but who makes it into our line-up?
Well, perhaps not overly surprisingly, just three players. But can you guess who? Click below to find out.
Chelsea will headline six Premier league teams heading to the United States in July for a pre-season tournament as English teams look to tap in to soccer’s expanding fanbase in America.
Todd Boehly’s squad will be joined by Newcastle, Aston Villa, Brentford, Brighton and Fulham for the ‘Summer Series’ that will run from July 22-30.
Chelsea will play Brighton in the opening game on July 22 in Philadelphia and round out the tournament in July 30 against Fulham in at FedEx Field in Maryland – home to Wayne Rooney’s DC United.
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Worringly for Frank Lampard, seven of his players are at risk of missing the second leg against Real Madrid, being just a yellow away from suspension.
Included is Enzo Fernandez, who has been key for Chelsea since arriving in January.
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Our reporter, Daniel Mathews, has previewed tonight’s game, wich you can read below.
One final roll of the dice. The faint hope of lightning striking for the fourth time in little more than a decade.It is a brutal illustration of Chelsea’s woes this season that they arrive here, in early April, knowing their last shot at silverware, and their only chance of qualifying for the Champions League, is to ride the wave of memory and win Europe’s most coveted prize. Simple as you like.
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N’Golo Kante is expected to be fit for the clash with Madrid. The Frenchman was left out of Chelsea’s squad in their defeat to Wolves at the weekend.
Mason Mount and Thiago Silva are both available. Both are expected to be named on the bench, with the pair not yet fully fit.
As for Madrid, with Ferland Mendy still out injured, Nacho is expected to fill in for the Frenchman.
Toni Kroos, Luka Modric and Eduardo Camavinga will most likely start in midfield for the Spanish side.
Predicted Real Madrid XI (4-3-3) – Courtois; Carvajal, Militao, Rudiger, Nacho; Kroos, Modric, Camavinga; Valverde, Vinicius, Benzema
Chelsea predicted lineup (4-3-3) – Kepa; James, Fofana, Koulibaly, Chilwell; Kovacic, Fernandez, Kante; Sterling, Havertz, Felix
Chelsea have been boosted by some good news ahead of the Real Madrid tie, with Ben Chilwell comitting his long-term future to the club.
The left back – who has made 80 appearances in all competitions for Chelsea since arriving in 2020 – will now remain at Stamford Bridge until the summer of 2027.
The new deal with the Premier League giants will see Chilwell land a pay rise, taking his wages to beyond £200,000 per week.
To read more click below…
Reports surfaced after Lampard was appointed as Graham Potter’s successor that his return to Stamford Bridge had come off the back of advice from the James Cordon, of all people.
The Englishman, who is a self-confessed West Ham fan, has hosted popular American talk show the Late Late Show since 2015 and is said to have struck up a friendship with Blues owner Boehly during his time in the US.
Lampard has quashed these claims, however, insisting the board wouldn’t make a decision based on one person’s opinion.
Lampard has confirmed Thiago Silva, N’Golo Kante and Mason Mount are in contention to face Real Madrid tonight.
Silva only returned to training this week with the 38-year-old having been unavailable since picking up a knee injury since February.
Mount and Kante were both absent from Chelsea’s 1-0 defeat against Wolves on Saturday, but are available for the trip to the Santiago Bernabeu.
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Sportsmail columnist Chris Sutton has had his say ahead of the crunch clash.
Sutton insists N’Golo Kante, who has trained ahead of the tie, has to start tonight. He recalls that two years ago, when Chelsea beat Real in the semi-finals, Kante was man of the match in both legs – and then again in the final against Manchester City.
With Madrid’s options in midfield – including Luka Modric, Toni Kroos, Federico Valverde, Eduardo Camavinga and Aurelien Tchouameni – Chelsea need their Kante nipping at their heels throughout.
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This evening’s showdown between Madrid and Chelsea will be shown live on BT Sport 1, with coverage beginning at 7pm.
The game between the two teams will also be streamed on the official BT Sport app.
Highlights will be uploaded to the official BT Sport YouTube channel after the game.
Of course, you can also just stick here!
Chelsea will hope to bring a positive result back to Stamford Bridge – but, of course, Real Madrid are the masters of the Champions League.
The second leg will take place next week, on Tuesday April 18, with the match again kicking off at 8pm.
Chelsea have endured a seriously tough season, with Frank Lampard now in charge for the remainder of the campaign following the exits of both Thomas Tuchel and Graham Potter.
However, an unlikely win over Real Madrid in the Champions League would raise the spirits at Stamford Bridge… tenfold!
The first leg – at Madrid – will kick-off at 8pm tonight.
Welcome to Sportsmail’s live blog covering all things Chelsea! We’ll be bringing you all the build-up to tonight’s crunch clash against Real Madrid.
We’ll bring you all the early team news, as well as the latest transfer talk. And, of course, we’ll then bring you updates of the game itself!
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