With a lot of tailwind and a good dose of self-confidence, Borussia Dortmund traveled to the Champions League hit at Chelsea.
In the round of 16 second leg on Tuesday (from 9:00 p.m. in the LIVE ticker >>>) in London, BVB defended a 1-0 lead from the first leg, the chances against the “Blues” squad of millions are intact. “It will be a tough fight. Everything is open, but we are very positive,” said BVB captain Marco Reus.
On Friday, the Dortmund team managed their tenth win in their tenth competitive game of the year against RB Leipzig (2-1). The triumph in the first duel with Chelsea three weeks ago also strengthens the Germans’ belief in the first quarter-finals in the “premier class” since the 2020/21 season.
“We will have to suffer”
“On Tuesday I’m happy with a draw. We don’t always have to win,” joked BVB sporting director Sebastian Kehl, referring to the impressive winning streak of the past few weeks. Like Reus, Kehl also expects a “brutal” game. “Chelsea will try everything. We will have to suffer.”
Hans-Joachim Watzke sees it similarly: “Nobody should believe that tenth place in the Premier League reflects the sporting quality of Chelsea. The knot can burst at any time, they have spent more than 600 million euros on transfers in eight months,” said the BVB managing director the “Ruhr Nachrichten”.
Question mark on the goalkeeper position
It’s unclear who will keeper Edin Terzic’s side’s goal at Stamford Bridge. Regular goalie Gregor Kobel, who has been in excellent form lately, complained of muscle problems in his thighs a few minutes before the game against Leipzig on Friday and was out at short notice. On Monday, however, the Swiss was on a plane to England with the team.
“We don’t know if he can play yet,” said Kehl. As against Leipzig, substitute keeper Alexander Meyer could step in.
In addition to Kobel, the recently injured striker Donyell Malen is also there. However, coach Edin Terzic still has to do without Karim Adeyemi after his muscle fiber tear. The ex-Salzburger had scored the 1-0 winner in the first leg three weeks ago against the English star ensemble after a turbo sprint across the field.
Kehl still thinks he has a good chance: “It would be great for Borussia Dortmund to be in a quarter-final of the Champions League again and set an exclamation mark in Europe,” he said.
Chelsea, meanwhile, got back on track with a 1-0 win against relegated Leeds United at the weekend. Coach Graham Potter’s team isn’t really getting going, since the turn of the year the “Blues” have never scored more than one goal per game in eleven competitive games.
The top performers N’Golo Kante and Christian Pulisic could return to the squad for the 2021 Champions League winner.
Roger Schmidt before entering the quarterfinals
In the second game of the evening, Benfica Lisbon defended a 2-0 win from the first leg at FC Bruges in front of their home crowd (from 21:00 in the LIVE ticker >>>). Ex-Salzburg coach Roger Schmidt could move into the Champions League quarter-finals for the first time in his coaching career with the superior Portuguese leaders.
LAOLA1 TV
to the TV program
