Rio Ferdinand makes his prediction for Chelsea vs Real Madrid
Former Manchester United legend Rio Ferdinand has made his predictions for Chelsea vs Real Madrid. The second leg of the Champions League semi-final will take place on Wednesday night, with the tie locked level at 1-1.
Chelsea scored a crucial away goal in the first leg played at the Estadio Alfredo di Stefano. Christian Pulisic scored a brilliant individual goal to hand Chelsea the lead before Karim Benzema equalized for Real Madrid.
Rio Ferdinand believes Chelsea will reach their third Champions League final on Wednesday and face Premier League rivals Manchester City in the final.
'Chelsea's high pace game will be too much for Real Madrid' - Rio Ferdinand
Speaking on his YouTube channel Rio Ferdinand Presents FIVE, the ex-Manchester United superstar believes Chelsea will progress through to the Champions League final at the expense of Real Madrid.
Speaking about the game, Ferdinand said:
"After watching Real Madrid play and navigate their way through against Liverpool I thought the experience was going to be telling for Real Madrid."
"But Chelsea, the way they play at high pace, Real Madrid canβt live with it. If they play at high pace the whole game again and go for it again, I think they overrun this Real Madrid team."
Rio Ferdinand believes Chelsea will have the edge if they play on the front foot for the whole 90 minutes. With the energy Chelsea possesses in their midfield with Kante, Havertz and Mount, Rio Ferdinand thinks they can outrun Real Madrid's aging midfield.
"The Champions League final will be an all-English affair" predicts Ferdinand
Rio Ferdinand thinks Chelsea will defeat Real Madrid in the semi-final to reach the showpiece final in Istanbul. He also predicted Manchester City will beat Paris Saint-Germain in the second semi-final.
If Ferdinand's prediction is accurate, this will be the second all-English Champions League final in three seasons. Liverpool and Tottenham competed in the 2019 final, which took place at the Wanda Metropolitano in Madrid.
"I think it will be a Chelsea vs. Manchester City final. I actually went the other way [beforehand], I thought it would be a Real Madrid vs. PSG final but not anymore."
Manchester City vs Paris Saint-Germain is the first of the second legs, taking place on Tuesday evening. Manchester City go into their home leg favorites after beating PSG 2-1 at the Parc des Princes.
Wednesday sees Chelsea and Real Madrid battle it out for the second Champions League final spot. With the tie perfectly poised at 1-1, it will be a tight affair which could go either way.