Mateo Kovacic misses out with an injury again but Reece James should return to the side when Chelsea face Real Madrid in the UEFA Champions League semi-finals.
Chelsea will be aiming to take a giant stride towards booking a place in the finals of the 2020/21 UEFA Champions League finals when they take on Real Madrid in the semi-final first leg at Estadio Alfredo Di Stefano on Tuesday night.
Leading up to the game, Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel does not have any fresh injury concerns and will just be without midfielder Mateo Kovacic, who has been out of action since the quarter-final second leg against FC Porto, missing the last four games for the Blues. “It is a very short update because it is only Mateo Kovacic we are missing. Everyone else is available and everyone else will be in the squad for tomorrow,” Tuchel said.
Changes are likely to kept to a minimum following the win against West Ham United at the weekend. So, while Kepa Arrizabalaga has enjoyed some sort of resurgence of late, Edouard Mendy ought to remain in goal for Chelsea against Real Madrid on Tuesday night.
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There is set to be a change in the defensive setup, though, as Reece James, who only featured as a substitute at the weekend, is in line to start at right wing-back. This should see Chelsea captain Cesar Azpilicueta move into three-man backline, slotting in alongside Thiago Silva and Antonio Rudiger, meaning Andreas Christensen is set to drop out of the lineup.
Ben Chilwell has re-established himself as the first-choice at left wing-back ahead of Marcos Alonso and that is unlikely to change when Chelsea visit the Spanish capital on Tuesday. Meanwhile, the injury to Kovacic means, the midfield partnership of Jorginho and N’Golo Kante should also remain intact for the Blues against Real Madrid.
Up ahead in attack, Mason Mount has been the in-form man for Chelsea this season and is a certain starter in one of the two attacking midfield slots. Hakim Ziyech hasn’t been favoured all that much by Tuchel so far in his time at the club and that is likely to be the case once again on Tuesday, with Christian Pulisic expected to feature yet again.
Up front, Kai Havertz is a genuine contender to start for Chelsea but following Timo Werner’s match-winning goal against West Ham at the weekend, the former RB Leipzig man is likely to get the nod as the centre-forward.
Chelsea Predicted XI: Mendy; Azpilicueta, Silva, Rudiger; James, Jorginho, Kante, Chilwell; Mount, Pulisic; Werner
