UEFA have confirmed the dates for Chelsea's two-legged knockout tie with Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League last 16.
The first leg will take place on Wednesday, 15th February 2023, with the return at Stamford Bridge almost a month later on 7th March.
A lot can happen between now and then, most notably the potential return of some big players for Graham Potter, whose injury list continues to grow. N'Golo Kante, Reece James, Wesley Fofana, Kepa Arrizabalaga, and Ben Chilwell might all be involved come the second leg in March. Though it is impossible to know what toll the upcoming World Cup will have on the players involved.
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Now that those dates have been set, it is interesting to glance at the Premier League fixtures set around both ties and if things will become trickier for Potter.
For the first leg, Chelsea remain in the capital for the games before and after. A trip to the London Stadium against West Ham on 11th February before a home clash with Southampton on the 18th. The following month Chelsea face Leeds on 4th March before a trip to the King Power Stadium against Leicester on the 11th.
Chelsea had mostly positive fortunes in comparative fixtures last season, beating Leeds, Southampton and Leicester under Thomas Tuchel, only losing to an impressive West Ham in a 3-2 derby in December of 2021.
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