Chelsea have once again secured their passage into the last eight of the Champions League. It's the third season in a row they have advanced this far, having failed to win a knockout round in the competition between 2014 and 2020. This is only the second time in the club's history they have achieved such a feat, too.
There are bigger plans than bowing out at this point as well, with Graham Potter looking to make himself the first ever English boss to get to the semi-finals of the competition in its current format. His young side are now daring to dream having overcome their first leg demons and also their goalscoring ones too.
On Wednesday night, Real Madrid beat Liverpool 1-0 on the night to go through 6-2 winners on aggregate, whilst Italian highflyers Napoli cruised into the last eight by knocking out Eintracht Frankfurt, 3-0 on the night and 5-0 over the two legs. The standard has been set by Manchester City though, with Erling Haaland powering in goals left, right and centre.
Chelsea won't be getting too far ahead of themselves though. They have a strong list of teams that they could be facing in the next round. Here are some of the dream scenarios for Chelsea:
Real Madrid
The reigning champions progressed from their last-16 tie after a 6-2 win over Liverpool with all but one of the goals coming in the away leg.
Having beaten Thomas Tuchel's Chelsea in the quarter-finals last season in a thrilling tie that included hat-tricks, goalkeeping blunders, unlikely heroes and extra-time, it would be quite the revenge story if Potter's men were afforded the chance to knock-out the defending champions.
It would also be another Stamford Bridge return for Carlo Ancelotti, Eden Hazard and the lesser mentioned Thibaut Courtois. Having played each other in the past two years, drawing each other for a third time would be the ultimate test for Potter and his young team.
Benfica
Drawing Benfica would not only draw several parallels to previous successful years, it would be a reunion for Enzo Fernandez.
Chelsea beat the Portuguese giants in the quarter-finals on their way to unlikely glory in 2012 and also had to get past Portuguese opposition in 2021, knocking out Porto at the same stage. A good omen, perhaps?
Benfica may not be in a position to welcome back Argentine midfielder Fernandez with good spirits just yet but it would nevertheless provide a very good opportunity for narratives to be written.
Napoli
Perhaps the most in-form team in Europe, the Italy league leaders and new champions by all but name, Luciano Spalletti's men are the entertainers. With 58 goals in 25 league games as well as 22 in seven Champions League matches, they are one of the most dangerous and free-flowing sides out there.
They have a 15-point gap at the top of Serie A having lost just two matches all season and fear nobody. With Chelsea starting to play a more exciting brand of football - albeit often without the end product to show - a matchup with Napoli could be a true feast for the eyes and a potential audition for reported Chelsea target Victor Osimhen.
Napoli hammered Eintracht Frankfurt on aggregate.
Manchester City
A potential repeat of the 2021 final, it's not a supporters dream by any stretch but challenging themselves against the best there is may be a worthwhile test for Potter and Chelsea.
They have already been beaten by Manchester City three times this season without scoring and don't carry the same fear that they did heading into the final two years ago, having won three out of three against Pep Guardiola in the months leading up to the game.
Either way, beating City in the last eight would be a big confidence boost. The Citizens cruised past RB Leipzig in the last-16 with a dominant 7-0 second leg win, including five from Erling Haaland. The Norway striker now has 38 goals for the season and is breaking all kinds of records.
He hasn't scored against Chelsea yet this season, quite the feat for the Blues despite their poor record against City, but would undoubtedly be a new type of challenge for Potter should they meet.
The draw will take place on March 17 and will be followed by the semi-final draw as well, mapping out the route to the final in Istanbul on June 10.
The full list of teams in the competition is as follows:
Chelsea
Benfica
Bayern Munich
AC Milan
Inter Milan
Manchester City
Napoli
Real Madrid
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