Chelsea vs Bayern Champions League preview: where to watch, predicted line-ups, team news
Monday, February 24, 2020
Article summary
Chelsea welcome Bayern in their UEFA Champions League round of 16 opener – all you need to know.
Article top media content
Article body
Chelsea welcome Bayern in the UEFA Champions League round of 16 on 25 February at 21:00 CET. This page will update with team news, quotes and expert analysis as kick-off approaches.
Where to watch the game on TV
Fans can find their local UEFA Champions League broadcast partner(s) here.
Since the group stage
Chelsea
Form: WLDWDLWWDWLW
Latest: Chelsea 2-1 Tottenham, 22/02
Where they stand: 4th in Premier League, FA Cup round of 16
Bayern
Form: WWDWWWWWWW
Latest: Bayern 3-2 Paderborn, 21/02
Where they stand: 1st in Bundesliga, German Cup quarter-finals
Possible line-ups
Chelsea: Caballero; Azpilicueta, Christensen, Rüdiger; James, Jorginho, Kovačić, Alonso; Mount, Abraham, Willian
Out: Kanté (adductor), Hudson-Odoi (hamstring), Pulišić (Achilles), Van Ginkel (knee)
Misses next game if booked: Azpilicueta, Jorginho, Zouma
Bayern: Neuer; Pavard, Boateng, Alaba, Davies; Kimmich, Thiago; Coman, Müller, Gnabry; Lewandowski
Out: Martínez (thigh), Süle (knee), Perisic (ankle)
Expert predictions
Jon Phipps, Chelsea reporter: Chelsea come into this repeat of the 2012 final having ended a run of four Premier League games without a win by beating Tottenham on Saturday. They will miss the influential N'Golo Kanté and Christian Pulišić, who shone during the group stage. Tammy Abraham has been suffering with injury but Olivier Giroud, still at the club despite bids in January, stepped in to score against Spurs. Frank Lampard must also choose between Kepa and Willy Caballero in goal – the latter has had the nod in the last four games.
Jordan Maciel, Bayern reporter: Top of the Bundesliga with arguably the best striker in the world right now – Robert Lewandowski – in their ranks, Hansi Flick’s side should be favourites for this tie. But anything is possible in knockout football and Bayern’s defensive vulnerabilities and tendency to falter in the second half of games are areas which Frank Lampard can look to exploit. Bayern do enjoy a trip to London, however, so I expect them to take a favourable result back to Munich for the second leg.
What the coaches say
Frank Lampard, Chelsea manager: "Concentration and focus must be absolutely top in both games. I like us to take risks in attacking areas but in terms of our defensive mind-set we have to be really on it. I understand if people call us underdogs because Bayern are so strong. Maybe we don't have their experience but we're here to turn it around, overcome."
Hansi Flick, Bayern coach: "Chelsea are a wonderful team with young and experienced players. They play freely and that has advantages, especially in attack. They are fast up front. Defensively there are mistakes but they are a team who can really put pressure on. My team knows what to expect and we want to be brave, confident and attack."
Previous meetings
• In the 2012 UEFA Champions League final, Thomas Müller's 83rd-minute header had seemingly given Jupp Heynckes' Bayern victory at their Fußball Arena München home, but five minutes later Didier Drogba headed an equaliser for a Chelsea team managed by Roberto Di Matteo. Former Blues winger Arjen Robben had an extra-time penalty saved by Petr Čech and there was more spot-kick misery for Bayern in the shoot-out, despite Juan Mata's miss. Čech saved from Ivica Olić and Bastian Schweinsteiger, leaving Drogba to convert the decisive kick and give Chelsea a 4-3 penalty triumph. Lampard scored Chelsea's third kick with Manuel Neuer converting from the spot for Bayern, for whom Jérôme Boateng played 120 minutes.
• Bayern were victorious in the 2013 UEFA Super Cup between the teams, at the Eden Arena in Prague. A Bayern side then coached by Josep Guardiola twice came from behind, Franck Ribéry (47) and Javi Martínez (120+1) cancelling out goals from Fernando Torres (8) and Eden Hazard (93) to force another penalty shoot-out against José Mourinho's Chelsea. Bayern ran out 5-4 winners on spot kicks with Chelsea's Romelu Lukaku having the tenth penalty of the shoot-out saved by Neuer. David Alaba scored Bayern's first kick; Lampard again converted Chelsea's third.
• Bayern and Chelsea first met in the 2004/05 UEFA Champions League quarter-finals, Mourinho's Blues prevailing 6-5 on aggregate against Felix Magath's Bayern. Chelsea won the first leg 4-2 at home, Lampard scoring twice with Drogba also on target. Lampard and Drogba struck again in the second leg as Bayern won 3-2 on the night but went out on aggregate.
Form guide
Chelsea
• Chelsea kicked off this season's group stage with a 1-0 defeat at home against Valencia, Lampard's side responding with successive away victories, beating LOSC Lille 2-1 and Ajax 1-0. They drew their next two games, coming back from 4-1 down to draw 4-4 with nine-man Ajax before a 2-2 draw at Valencia on Matchday 5, but made sure of a knockout place with a 2-1 win at home to LOSC. They finished level with Valencia on 11 points but behind the Spanish side on head-to-head record.
• The loss to Valencia on Matchday 1 is Chelsea's only European reverse at Stamford Bridge in 14 matches (W8 D5), although they had not won in three home European matches (D2 L1) before beating LOSC.
• Third in last season's Premier League, Chelsea also qualified for the 2019/20 UEFA Champions League as the winners of the UEFA Europa League, and are taking part for the 16th time; this is their 14th appearance in the round of 16.
• The London club's record in the round of 16 is W8 L5. They have lost their last three contests at this stage, most recently going down 4-1 on aggregate to Barcelona (1-1 h, 0-3 a) in 2017/18.
• This is only the fourth time Chelsea have been at home in the first leg of their round of 16 tie; their record in the previous three is W1 D1 L1, with the aggregate record W1 L2 in those ties.
• The Blues were UEFA Europa League winners under Maurizio Sarri in 2018/19, beating Arsenal 4-1 in an all-English final in Baku as Chelsea claimed their second UEFA Europa League title having also triumphed in 2013, their only other appearance in the competition.
• Chelsea beat Eintracht Frankfurt in last season's UEFA Europa League semi-finals, going through on penalties after two 1-1 draws. That extended their perfect record in two-legged knockout contests against German clubs to three wins from as many ties.
• The Blues have never lost at home to German visitors, winning six of the nine fixtures, all bar the Eintracht game in the UEFA Champions League.
• Chelsea were unbeaten in European competition last season, claiming the UEFA Europa League with a record of W12 D3 F36 A10. Before losing to Valencia on Matchday 1, their last continental defeat had come at Barcelona in the UEFA Champions League round of 16 second leg in March 2018 (0-3), although they did lose on penalties against Liverpool in the UEFA Super Cup last August following a 2-2 draw after 120 minutes in Istanbul.
Bayern
• Bayern became only the seventh team – and first from Germany – to win all six games in the UEFA Champions League group stage this season, opening their campaign with a 3-0 win at home to Crvena zvezda before a 7-2 win at Tottenham. Olympiacos were then beaten away (3-2) and home (2-0), the latter result securing their place in the round of 16 with two games to spare, before a 6-0 victory at Crvena zvezda on Matchday 5 guaranteed first place in the section. Bayern rounded off a perfect group campaign with a 3-1 home win against Spurs in Munich.
• Robert Lewandowski scored in Bayern's first five group games and is the top scorer in this season's UEFA Champions League with ten goals, including four in the win at Crvena zvezda on Matchday 5 – at 16 minutes the fastest quadruple in UEFA Champions League history. That was the 20th time Bayern had scored five or more goals in a UEFA Champions League match, setting a new competition record.
• Bayern's round of 16 record is W11 L4. They had won seven ties in a row before losing to another English club, Liverpool, last season (0-0 a, 1-3 h). It was their earliest exit from the competition since an away-goals defeat at the hands of Internazionale in 2010/11. They have reached the knockout phase in each of the past 12 seasons.
• Bayern are unbeaten in their last 12 European away games (W9 D3), scoring at least two goals in all but a goalless draw at Liverpool in last season's round of 16 first leg. Before winning at Benfica on Matchday 1 last season the Munich club had not kept a clean sheet on their UEFA Champions League travels in 14 matches; they have now managed four in the last seven.
• Bayern were the only side to collect maximum points in this season's group stage, and finished as top scorers with 24 goals – one short of Paris Saint-Germain's competition record, set in 2017/18.
• This is Bayern's 23rd UEFA Champions League campaign, fewer only than Barcelona and Real Madrid (both 24). They have now won their section 16 times.
• Champions of Germany for a record 29th time last season – with a landmark seventh successive Bundesliga title – Bayern had reached the UEFA Champions League quarter-finals or better in seven successive campaigns before losing to Liverpool last season.
• Bayern's record in two-legged ties against English clubs is W10 L6; they had won five in a row before last season, their first defeat since losing to Chelsea in the 2004/05 quarter-finals.
• Bayern have won only two of their last six games away to English clubs (D2 L2), both victories coming in London – this season's seven-goal flourish at Tottenham and a 5-1 success at Arsenal in the 2016/17 UEFA Champions League round of 16 second leg.
Links and trivia
• Have played in England:
Philippe Coutinho (Liverpool 2013–18)
Serge Gnabry (Arsenal 2011–16, West Brom 2015/16 (loan))
Jérôme Boateng (Manchester City 2010/11)
• Coutinho scored twice in Liverpool's 3-1 Premier League win at Stamford Bridge on 31 October 2015.
• Have played in Germany:
Andreas Christensen (Borussia Mönchengladbach 2015–17 (loan))
Christian Pulišić (Borussia Dortmund 2016–19)
Michy Batshuayi (Borussia Dortmund 2018 (loan))
Antonio Rüdiger (Stuttgart 2011–15)
• Müller scored twice and provided an assist as Germany won 4-1 against an England side including Lampard in the round of 16 at the 2010 FIFA World Cup.
• Müller scored one goal and set up another as Germany beat Willian's Brazil 7-1 in the 2014 World Cup semi-finals.
• International team-mates:
Willian & Philippe Coutinho (Brazil)
N'Golo Kanté, Kurt Zouma, Olivier Giroud & Lucas Hernandez, Benjamin Pavard, Kingsley Coman, Corentin Tolisso (France)
Antonio Rüdiger & Thomas Müller, Joshua Kimmich, Manuel Neuer, Jérôme Boateng, Serge Gnabry, Leon Goretzka (Germany)
Mateo Kovačić & Ivan Perišić (Croatia)
César Azpilicueta, Marcos Alonso, Pedro Rodríguez & Thiago Alcántara, Álvaro Odriozola (Spain)
• Kanté, Giroud, Hernandez, Pavard and Tolisso were all part of France's victorious 2018 World Cup squad. Perišić scored for Croatia in France's 4-2 final win.
• Jorginho scored Italy's goal in a 1-1 UEFA Nations League draw against Lewandowski's Poland in October 2018.