Chelsea Vs Barcelona: Determinant Duel At Stamford Bridge

Pedro Neto, shirt as Chelsea at the front line (photo: x @chelseafc)

JAKARTA - Chelsea and Barcelona will face each other in a match titled 'clash of the titans' at Stamford Bridge on Tuesday, November 25, when the two are in the same position in the midst of intense competition in the Champions League league phase.

The two European giants both collected seven points from the first four matches. The ups and downs put Chelsea in 12th position while Barcelona were one level higher in 11th place, but both were still out of the automatic zone towards the last 16.

Chelsea had to struggle again on the fourth matchday when they were detained 2-2 by a Champions League surprise this season, Qarabag. Alejandro Garnacho became the savior of the Blues through an equalizer goal in Baku.

Despite failing to record an away victory, Chelsea's performance at Stamford Bridge was solid. Benfica and Ajax have fallen in London, and the Blues have recorded 16 matches without defeat in the group/legage phase of Europe since losing to Valencia in 2019.

Positive trends were also brought from domestic. Enzo Maresca led his team to three consecutive wins in the Premier League without conceding, including a 2-0 win over Burnley last weekend, which brought Chelsea up to second place in the standings.

Meanwhile, Barcelona came with high confidence after celebrating their first win at Camp Nou which had just been renovated ending 909 days' wait after crushing Athletic Bilbao 4-0. Ferran Torres scored two goals, Lamine Yamal scored two assists, Robert Lewandowski added a mandatory goal, and Fermin Lopez also listed the names on the scoreboard.

Despite being sharp again, the match will also be Barca's first clean sheet in 11 matches. On the other hand, in the Champions League, the Blaugrana goal has conceded every game this season, including when Club Brugge drew 3-3 on the fourth matchday.

In the history of the meeting in London, Barcelona have only won once from seven visits to Stamford Bridge. But they once eliminated Chelsea with a 3-0 win in the last 16 of the 2017-18 season.

Chelsea captain Reece James made fans anxious when they were pulled out during the break against Burnley. But Maresca insists the change was only part of the plan, not a new injury. Wesley Fofana was also rested, but is predicted to come down to face Barcelona.

Chelsea are still without Romeo Lavia, Cole Palmer, Dario Essugo, Levi Colwill, and Mykhaylo Mudryk who have been absent for almost a year due to a doping suspension.

In the Barcelona camp, Alejandro Balde was replaced with a head impact but is expected to remain available. Marcus Rashford is doubtful due to illness, while Raphinha has returned from a hamstring injury. Ferran Torres most likely defended his place after performing brilliantly.

Frenkie de Jong is ready to play after undergoing a domestic suspension. But Barca still without Pedri, Gavi, and main goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen.

A boring game is difficult if Barcelona get involved. The last six games they scored 30 goals, or an average of five goals per game. Likewise in the last 20 matches in the Champions League, Barca recorded an average of 4.8 goals per game.

Chelsea does have a fast winger that can exploit the Hansi Flick-style high defense line. But Barcelona brought in many world-class strikers who were able to change the course of the game at any time. Therefore, this duel is predicted to take place spectacularly with a narrow advantage for the Blaugrana.

Chelsea (4-2-3-1): Sanchez; James, Adarbioyo, Chalobah, Cucurella; Caicedo, Fernandez; Neto, Pedro, Garnacho; Delap

Barcelona (4-2-3-1):J. Garcia; Kounde, E. Garcia, Cubarsi, Balde; Casado, De Jong; Yamal, Lopez, Torres; Lewandowski