Barcelona looks to stave off Champions League elimination in the second leg of their round of 16 tie against Chelsea at Camp Nou.
Barcelona had far from their best performance against Chelsea in the first leg of their round of 16 matchup. It felt like the Premier League powerhouse was the better of the two sides at Stamford Bridge. The in-form Brazilian midfielder Willian scored an excellent goal to give Chelsea the lead in the second half. Things seemed to be in control. However, a defensive error from talented Danish defender Andreas Christensen allowed Lionel Messi in on goal and he wasn’t going to be stopped.
The Argentine superstars late equalizer gave both teams a share of the spoils going into the second leg at Camp Nou. In addition to the draw, the away goals rule is in effect so Barca go into this match with the lead (technically speaking). Despite Messi’s goal against Chelsea, the Barca forwards haven’t been able to score in Europe this season. However, they will look to deliver against a tough Chelsea side coached by Antonio Conte.
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Despite his injury, Andres Iniesta is fit and manager Ernesto Valverde has included him in the squad for this match. The Spanish midfielder picked up a hamstring injury against Atletico Madrid a few weeks ago. Iniesta missed the match against Malaga, a 2-0 win for Barca ahead of this match with Chelsea. However, the captain was able to train on Monday and Tuesday and could be in the starting 11.
Defender/midfielder Sergi Roberto has also been declared fit after picking up a knock against Malaga on the weekend. In addition to that, Messi was given a rest against Malaga due to the birth of his third child. He will be available to help his team try to advance past Chelsea. Philippe Coutinho scored his first league goal with Barca against Malaga, but is cup-tied. Denis Suarez and Nelson Semedo miss out due to injury. Yerry Mina is healthy, but was left out of the squad.
Overall, Barcelona will need their best match of the season to get past Chelsea. The Premier League power is coming off of a 2-1 win against Crystal Palace this past weekend. Willian and Eden Hazard will look to cause problems on the counter attack for Chelsea. They are both very talented players that have to be contained if the Blaugrana want to advance.
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Although Barcelona has an advantage on away goals, they can’t relax against this really good Chelsea team. Antonio Conte’s team has to score to have a chance of advancing, so Chelsea will likely come out aggressive in attack as opposed to sitting back and defending. The Barca defense has to be organized and disciplined because Chelsea has a lot of quality and creativity. This match should be a classic and expect a lot of fireworks when Barcelona and Chelsea clash at Camp Nou.