“Shameless and dumb”, “1% chance 99% faith” – Chelsea owner Todd Boehly makes crazy prediction ahead of Real Madrid game, fans lose their mind
Chelsea owner Todd Boehly recently made a crazy prediction that his team will beat Real Madrid 3-0 in the Champions League, which has taken fans by surprise.
For the third season in a row, Real Madrid and Chelsea will meet in the competition. Los Blancos will host the Blues at the Santiago Bernabeu for the first leg of their quarter-final encounter, scheduled to be played on Wednesday, April 13.
Carlo Ancelotti's team, the reigning champions, are the favorites to prevail, but Boehly, who bought Chelsea for about £4.25 billion last year, expects his side to win in Madrid.
He predicted a 3-0 win for Chelsea, which sounds quite audacious given their poor run of form. Indeed, the Premier League outfit have won only thrice in their last 13 games, but none of their last four.
His bold prediction has drawn hilarious reactions from the supporters, who themselves aren't too confident of their chances against the defending champions.
One fan said it was "1% chance and 99% faith", while another suggested that the American wants Chelsea to be a "meal" for the Twitterati.
Here are some of the best Twitter reactions:
@ESPNFC 1% chance 99% faith
@ESPNFC Nah he wants us to be a meal on twitter 😭😭😭
@ESPNFC I will be there to slander him I AM 100% sure I am coming back to laugh at this
@ESPNFC Stand up comedian
@ESPNFC American Owner so shameless and dumb😭
@ESPNFC 3-0 loss would be a great achievement
@ESPNFC The only way that possibly happens is if Real Madrid forfeit.
Chelsea to take inspiration from last year's performance against Real Madrid
When the sides met at the same stage last year, Real Madrid won 5-4 on aggregate, though Chelsea managed to beat them 3-2 at the Santiago Bernabeu.
A similar result this time around would hold them in good stead ahead of the return leg at Stamford Bridge next Tuesday.
Mason Mount, Antonio Rudiger, and Timo Werner had the Blues 3-0 by the 75th minute and were 4-3 ahead on aggregate as Los Blancos were on the verge of crashing out.
However, late goals from Rodrygo and Karim Benzema poured cold water over their aspirations as the Premier League giants crashed out on aggregate despite winning on the night.
Two of the goalscorers of that night are no longer in the squad, with Rudiger joining Madrid the following summer and Werner returning to RB Leipzig, but Frank Lampard still has quite a few options in the attack.
Real Madrid have also been in good form of late. The European champions have themselves looked sharp lately, beating Rayo Vallecano and then thrashing Barcelona at Camp Nou.
Benzema, who scored four goals against the Blues in their tie last year, including a hat-trick at Stamford Bridge, has netted a treble in both the aforesaid games and will be raring to take on the west London side once more.