Real Madrid midfielder Toni Kroos has encouraged his team to learn from their mistakes and beat Chelsea in the Champions League quarter-final. Sergio Aguero, a former Manchester City striker, says he can’t predict how the match will end.
Both clubs are in quite different shapes ahead into the replay of last season’s Champions League semi-final. Carlo Ancelotti is under immense pressure at Madrid following the recent El Clasico thrashing, as well as his handling of specific players like Eden Hazard and Luka Jovic, which has prompted calls to replace the former Chelsea manager.
On the contrary, since the sanctioning debacle started, the current World and European Champions have strung together six wins on the bounce in all competitions which has them as heavy favourites to progress from this Champions League quarter-final.
Despite this, Thomas Tuchel says the task ahead is a ‘tough’ one for his side who have seen Los Blancos’ resilience after they overturned a first-leg deficit to knock out Mauricio Pochettino’s Paris Saint-Germain side. “Tough one. The challenge cannot be much higher than playing the second leg in Bernabeu with spectators [as things stand].
It’s a big challenge, but it’s also a big excitement around this match, around this fixture. So we know what’s coming and it will be an exciting match and a tough challenge,” he revealed ahead of Middlesbrough.
On top of this, the German believes having no fans at Stamford Bridge poses a problem. He said: “It would be a disadvantage. But listen, in general, this game is for the spectators, the game changes so much with spectators. So hopefully we’ll find solutions. I’m pretty sure everybody at the club and the board will fight for a chance.
“I don’t know how big the possibility is, but the games are for the spectators and especially these games. It’s a different game when the crowds are in the stadium. Hopefully, we can make it happen somehow.”
“We are recommended to look at ourselves. And if we are good, it is possible, we have seen it. That is why we have to see that we are very good because we have to be to reach the semi-finals,” he told Spanish outlet Diario AS.
“If we correct our mistakes, we will eliminate Chelsea.” Whilst not going as far as the Real Madrid midfielder did, retired footballer and Premier League legend Aguero believes it’s anyone’s game this season out of the final eight as to whom makes the grand showpiece at the end of the season in France.