Chelsea will face Real Madrid in the quarter-final of the UEFA Champions League next month. The Blues and Los Blancos are set go head-to-head for the second time is as many seasons after the former beat the latter in the semi-finals last term.
The reigning European champions, Chelsea, have Real Madrid in their way of a semi-final spot as they look to retain their title. If they do reach the last four, then the Blues will take on the winner of Atletico Madrid and Manchester City.
Los Blancos are comfortably top of the La Liga table, with 10 points separating them and second-placed Sevilla after 28 matches of the season. However, there is one big "weakness" in the Real Madrid side.
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Speaking last month, after Real beat Alaves 3-0, with all three goals coming in the second-half, manager Carlo Ancelotti urged his side to start showing up in the opening period of games. The Italian coach said: "We've spoken about it: the fact that it is hard for us to go into games with the necessary intensity. It is a weakness we've had and let's hope we can fix it."
As mentioned above, the quarter-final will see two of last season's semi-finalists meet once again. In the first-leg back in April 2021, that took place in Madrid, the two sides could not be separated.
Christian Pulisic handed Chelsea the lead in Spain, but Karim Benzema was on hand to ensure the sides went in level ahead of the return leg at Stamford Bridge. In truth, it was a rather comfortable decisive leg for the Blues - who won 2-0 on the night through Timo Werner and Mason Mount.
Despite his team showing they can beat Real Madrid last season, Thomas Tuchel is expecting a difficult tie for the Blues. He said: "[It's a] tough one. The challenge cannot be much higher than playing the second-leg in the Bernabeu with spectators [as things stand].
"It's a big challenge, but it is also a big excitement around this match, around this fixture. So we know what's coming and it will be an exciting match and a tough challenge."
