Chelsea host UWCL holders Barcelona at Stamford Bridge on Saturday for the second leg of their semi-final clash.
Emma Hayes’ side hold a one-goal advantage heading into the weekend’s fixture after Erin Cuthbert scored the only goal of the first leg in Barcelona last week. However, Chelsea are well aware of the threat their opponents pose as their Champions League hopes have been shattered twice by the Catalan club in the last four years.
Barcelona are the current holders of the competition and will be hoping to reach the final for a fourth consecutive year. Chelsea, on the other hand, have featured in the UWCL final just once in their long history but were comfortably beaten 4-0 by Saturday’s opponents back in the 2021 showdown.
The London outfit may be one of the most successful clubs in England, but their record in Europe fails to match up. With Hayes set to depart Chelsea at the end of the season after more than a decade at the club, this represents one final chance at securing the trophy that has somehow always evaded her.
Here’s 90min‘s preview of Saturday’s UWCL semi-final second leg.
Chelsea vs Barcelona H2H Record (All Games)
Current Form (all competitions)
|
Chelsea |
Barcelona |
|---|---|
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Barcelona 0-1 Chelsea – 20/04/24 |
Levante Las Planas 2-4 Barcelona – 24/04/24 |
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Chelsea 3-0 Aston Villa – 17/04/24 |
Barcelona 0-1 Chelsea – 20/04/24 |
|
Man Utd 2-1 Chelsea – 14/04/24 |
Barcelona 5-1 Villarreal – 13/04/24 |
|
Arsenal 1-0 Chelsea – 31/03/24 |
Levante 0-5 Barcelona – 31/03/24 |
|
Chelsea 1-1 Ajax – 27/03/24 |
Barcelona 3-1 Brann – 28/03/24 |
|
Country |
TV Channel/livestream |
|---|---|
|
United Kingdom |
TNT Sports 3, DAZN |
|
United States |
DAZN |
|
Canada |
DAZN |
Chelsea captain Millie Bright returned to the matchday squad in the first leg last week following a long spell on the sidelines with a knee injury. Hayes confirmed she’s available for the second leg, but it remains to be seen whether she gets any minutes on the pitch having not featured since the 2-2 draw against Real Madrid in the group stages back in November.
Elsewhere, the Chelsea boss also confirmed Nathalie Bjorn and Maren Mjelde trained as normal and are likely to be in the squad on Saturday. Bjorn has been sidelined since early March with a calf problem.
Chelsea predicted lineup vs Barcelona (3-5-2): Hampton; Charles, Carter, Buchanan; Lawrence, Nusken, Leupolz, Cuthbert, Kaneryd; Ramirez, James
The visitors remain without long-term absentee Mapi Leon after she underwent knee surgery at the end of last year. The defender has not been named in the squad to face Chelsea, but has travelled with her teammates to London.
Jonatan Giraldez’s side were in league action midweek against Levante Las Planas, but the manager took the opportunity to rest some key players ahead of another huge European fixture. Keira Walsh was named on the bench on Wednesday, while Ballon d’Or winner Aitana Bonmati, Salma Paralluelo, Fridolina Rolfo and Caroline Graham Hansen were not involved at all.
Barcelona predicted lineup vs Chelsea (4-3-3): Coll; Batlle, Paredes, Engen, Rolfo; Bonmati, Walsh, Guijarro; Hansen, Paralluelo, Caldentey
Chelsea’s form has been staggered over the last few weeks following defeat in the Conti Cup final against Arsenal and against Manchester United in the semi-finals of the FA Cup. However, in the league they remain dominant and, unlike Barcelona, had no midweek fixture to contend.
The one-goal advantage is slim and a goal early doors from the visitors could make it a long and arduous afternoon for Chelsea. But, with the experience in the squad, the Stamford Bridge crowd behind them and if they build on last week’s defensive masterclass, they should have enough to get over the line.
Prediction: Chelsea 2-1 Barcelona
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90 Mins
