Why Chelsea's underdog tag could play in their favour against Real Madrid in Champions League QF
Chelsea are probably at their lowest ebb at the moment and enduring their worst run of form in over a decade following a series of drab performances and results.
That they occupy 11th position in the Premier League is evidence of how poor they’ve been, but more worryingly, the Blues don’t look like a team on track to turn things around.
Winless in four games across competitions, Frank Lampard's side has a lot to prove when they travel to face holders Real Madrid in the first leg of the UEFA Champions League quarterfinals on Wednesday (April 12).
Los Blancos haven't been at their best in La Liga recently, they know when to step up when the stakes are high. That's why Chelsea will have their task cut out when they step out to the Santiago Bernabeu.
Real Madrid are huge favourites for a reason
There’s a difference between a team playing well but being eluded by luck and one that isn’t making an effort to earn results. At the moment, Chelsea are firmly in the latter category, having failed to raise their level despite a change in the managerial dugout.
That makes the Blues underdogs and Real Madrid huge favourites ahead of Wednesday’s clash. While Lampard’s side has been largely inconsistent and have struggled, the Blancos are the complete opposite: An experienced team that's also well-coached.
Carlo Ancelotti’s side may have lost to Villarreal at the weekend, but the Italian manager had rung the changes and rested most of his key players for the this Champions League game.
Real Madrid thrashed La Liga leaders Barcelona 4-0 barely a week ago in Copa del Rey. They certainly have momentum on their side as they prepare to host a fragile Chelsea team.
Lampard urging Chelsea to make a mark
Everything seems to point to a victory for Real Madrid at the Bernabeu, but this is football and results are never written in stone, irrespective of the form of the teams involved.
Being the underdog means Chelsea go into this game without pressure. Everyone expects them to lose, but that can be an added motivation for the Blues to upset the odds.
Having been written off due to their poor performances all season, this game presents the perfect opportunity for the players to answer the critics by rising to the occasion.
“Games like tomorrow are a great chance to perform and show the personality that makes you a proper leader,” Lampard noted, as quoted by Chelseafc.com.
He continued:
“It’s normal in a season when a club like us falls below the levels we want the character gets questioned. It’s one of the first things probably to get questioned in times of defeat. The only thing the players can do is prove it on the pitch where people can see it.
“There’s a lot of work that we do behind the scenes on the training and around the dressing room talking to the players. My job is to convey to them the need to train at a certain level, to have a mentality at a certain level, individually and as a group, and the rest is they have to show it on the pitch.”
Going into a game as an underdog isn’t necessarily a bad thing, and Lampard has laid down the gauntlet. The onus now lies with the players to respond positively and prove why they deserve to be in the next stage of the Champions League.
Real Madrid may be the favourites, but they’re not invincible, as shown by their defeat to Villarreal. Chelsea can make their underdog tag play in their favour at the Bernabeu. They beat the holders away from home in the Champions League last season.