The Champions League returns this Tuesday as Chelsea travel to Paris…
Chelsea will return to action in this year’s Champions League as the latter stages get underway with the last 16 this week. The Blues will travel to France to take on Ligue 1 champions Paris Saint-Germain in what is sure to be a tough and fascinating encounter.
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We have picked out five key battles on the pitch which are likely to decide where the match will be won and lost.
John Terry vs Zlatan Ibrahimovic
A battle between two true heavyweights of world football. Ibrahimovic has scored 15 goals this season, but Terry won’t need to be told just how good his Swedish opponent is.
Terry is known for getting stuck into his opponent to unsettle them and loving a tackle, he will have to be on the top of his game if he is to nullify the threat of one of the best strikers in world football.
Branislav Ivanovic vs Ezequiel Lavezzi
Ivanovic is one of the safest pairs of hands in the game, rarely letting his side down and contributing a few goals to boot. Lavezzi is likely to pose a different problem to what he faces most weeks in the Premier League though, the 29-year-old Argentine has scored four goals this season, slightly less than he would like, and will want to be in top form for Chelsea’s visit.
Yohan Cabaye vs Nemanja Matic
Former Newcastle United man, Cabaye signed for the French champions in the January transfer window of 2014 and has slotted into the side seamlessly.
Cabaye may well have met his match in Nemanja Matic though, widely regarded as one of the best holding midfielders in the world. Expect both to be on top form in an enthralling encounter.
Eden Hazard vs Marco Verratti
Hazard will have to be at his brilliant best if Chelsea are to get a good result in the match, and if he is to outfox Italian midfielder Marco Verratti.
The young Belgian has been at the heart of much of his side’s good moves, scoring 11 goals for the Blues this season and assisting seven, although Verratti showed exactly what he was about in the World Cup this summer against England – a brilliant talent.
David Luiz vs Diego Costa
The likelihood is all eyes will be on former Chelsea defender David Luiz as he meets his former employers this Tuesday, following signing for PSG in a £50 million deal this summer.
Diego Costa has picked up where he left off last season at Atletico Madrid and has 17 goals to his name, but Chelsea will know all about Luiz and can Costa expect a great tussle with their former defender.