Strongest Chelsea Line Up To Play Against Atletico Madrid – Hazard, Oscar And Willian To Start

In the wake of injuries, suspensions and fatigue, we have the interesting task to predict the starting line-up of football teams during the business end of the season. It becomes all the more exciting when we have to predict Jose Mourinho’s Chelsea’s starting line-up against Atletico Madrid for the UEFA Champions League Semi Final second leg, which happens to be the decider.

Here is my predicted Chelsea Line Up:

Goalkeeper: Mark Schwarzer

Injury to Petr Cech in the first leg against Atletico Madrid has ruled the Czech international goalkeeper out for the rest of the season. This has led Chelsea to utilise the 41 year old veteran understudy Mark Schwarzer to the maximum in the past three games. Schwarzer gave a very good performance against Liverpool, much needed to boost his confidence ahead of this crucial fixture.

Right Back: Branislav Ivanovic

The Serb was excellent against Liverpool playing the central position. Having missed the first leg due to suspension, Ivanovic got an unlikely break in a busy schedule and playing a less energy-draining centre back position on Sunday means the Serb will definitely start at Right Back.

Right Centre Back: Gary Cahill

Gary Cahill was on the bench against Liverpool and had a cameo in the match for the last 10 minutes. Will be fresh to play on Wednesday and will be a key man in stopping Diego Costa and co. Having recently featured in the PFA Team of The Year, the England International Centre-back will be high on confidence and enthusiasm.

Left Centre Back: John Terry (C)

Yes! The captain should be back for this game. After suffering a crunching ankle injury in the first leg, it was expected that John Terry won’t complete the season. But the Chelsea leader, known for his resilience has fought back from the injury. Jose Mourinho had ruled him out of the Liverpool game but when asked about the Atletico match, he said “Let’s see”. When Jose gives such answers, it generally means he’ll go ahead with the selection of that player, like he did with Eto’o against Paris Saint Germain.

Left Back: Cesar Azpilicueta

The Spanish defender, originally a right back, will be expected to resume his left-back duties which he has carried out in style this season. He has been one of the best performers for the Blues and Jose Mourinho is bound to play Azpilicueta for the work ethic, decision making and tactical game-reading ability of the Spaniard.

Defensive Midfield: David Luiz

 

The Brazilian International performs unbelievably well when moved from the Centre Back position to the defensive midfield. He also performed well enough when he actually had to play the Centre Back role when John Terry had to leave the pitch due to injury. Luiz was given a well-deserved rest against Liverpool and the Brazilian all-action-maverick will be raring to go on Wednesday night.

Box-to-Box/ Defensive Midfield: Ramires

One of Chelsea’s most tireless players, Ramires has been the engine for the Blues. He has lately been criticised for his lack of vision in the central midfield, but ever since Matic’s arrival, Ramires has been that aggressive and energetic destroyer that Jose Mourinho likes to have in the team. He serves a 4 match ban domestically, which gave the Brazilian some much needed rest before a very key and physically draining game.

Central Attacking Midfield: Oscar

Oscar has been one of Chelsea’s key players this season as he effectively displaced Juan Mata off the team. He has shown immense work rate and some astonishing physicality for a frail-framed youngster. Oscar has played like a typical Mourinho player, sometimes curbing his flair for some direct attacking. Recently, due to the continuous run of games the Brazilian has had since the last 2 years without a break, his form has dipped a bit causing him to be a mere passer in the midfield rather than affecting the game in the final third. Yet, the Brazilian was given timely breaks in the first leg of the semi-final and the game against Liverpool, so he would be expected to start the game in his favourite spot.

Right Attacking Midfield: Willian

The fourth and the last Brazilian in the team, Willian is surely starting the match. He started from the bench against Liverpool and scored a late goal that killed off Liverpool. We can fully expect the energetic Brazilian to start the game from the right hand side of the field and affect a lot of counter attacking moves.

Left Attacking Midfield: Eden Hazard

Yes, the Belgian genius! Eden Hazard is expected to be fully fit against Atletico Madrid for the second leg after being injured in the second leg of the quarter final against PSG. Hazard has missed 4 games for Chelsea including the PSG game. He can be a bit rusty but having recently won the PFA Young Player’s award, Hazard would be high on confidence and would have the enthusiasm to show off his flair and flamboyance yet again, and be the driving force for Chelsea’s attack.

Centre Forward: Fernando Torres

Well, it isn’t entirely known if Samuel Eto’o is fit or not whereas Fernando Torres has recently shown signs of enthusiasm and some form on the pitch. In the first leg, he was one of the best players on the pitch with desire and energy to attack. Torres was also lively against another of his former clubs-Liverpool when he made a late substitute appearance on Sunday as he unselfishly set up Willian for an open goal tap in. We can expect the Spaniard to start against Atletico, his boyhood club.