Strike

i think 12 players are not allowed

yeah. correct. 2 windows.

they have a deal with Ter Stegen but they can't register him now right? This ban looks solid. I read somewhere Barca are caught on multiple accounts

Imagine Pinto as first choice for 2 years

i don't think it'll happen. ban will be upheld atleast this summer

fixed

Why Schurrle striker?

wow. team really looked lost

I'm beginning to think these social media jabs are co-ordinated between the two clubs

it's not the mirror and it looks legit to me

@CHOULO19, proof that Chelsea were indeed after Cavani

Chelsea travel to Paris to take on Paris St Germain in the first leg of the Quarter finals of the UEFA Champions League on Wednesday night. The Blues suffered a morale-sapping loss away at Crystal Palace in the Premier League and will be looking to bounce back against a PSG side 13-points clear at the top of Ligue 1. PSG were Jose Mourinho's first European opponents as Chelsea manager with Chelsea coming on top with John Terry scoring (at the right end). But this is a very different side from 2004. The French club have had a transformation of sorts, accelerated by the Qatar Investment Authority's take over of the club in 2011 and are now close to their second Ligue 1 title in a row. This may not have been the stand-out game when the draw was announced but it should be an intriguing contest between two sides with similar ambitions in the Champions League. Heading into the first leg, there is no clear favorite in this quarter-final tie. Opposition PSG are unbeaten in Ligue 1 since the start of December and have won their last nine games in all competitions. Mourinho will need no reminding of the threat posed by Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who is the 2nd-top scorer in the competition with 10 goals. In the Round of 16, PSG dispatched Bayer Leverkusen 6-1 on aggregate. Their most recent game against Nice ended 1-0 with Cavani forcing an own goal. With the game played on Friday, PSG were afforded an extra day of rest before the visit of Chelsea. PSG is expected to control possession in this game and Chelsea will probably be happy to let them do that. It remains to be seen if Mourinho will field a 4-2-3-1 or a 4-3-3 as he has remained flexible with his formation this season but PSG is expected to line up in a 4-3-3 formation with the trio of Motta Matuidi and Verratti in midfield. Expected Lineup - Sirigu - Jallet T.Silva Alex Maxwell - Motta Matuidi Verratti - Lavezzi Cavani Ibrahimovic Chelsea Ashley Cole (knee) and Samuel Eto'o(hamstring) are both injury doubts while Matic and Salah are ineligible. The back five picks itself for the Blues - as confirmed by Mourinho in his pre-match press conference - and with Eto'o injured, it should be Fernando Torres again up-front. The Spaniard has been preferred for away games either way. It is in midfield that Mourinho is expected to ring the changes with one of the them forced by Matic's unavailability. Ramires, who sat out the ill-fated trip to Crystal Palace due to suspension, will fill in. Willian and Oscar may also return at the expense of Schurrle and Lampard. Expected Lineup - Cech - Ivanovic Cahill Terry Azpilicueta - Ramires Luiz - Willian Oscar Hazard - Torres Stats and facts - PSG manager Laurent Blanc has a history with Mourinho as Blanc spent the 1996-97 season at Barcelona, where Mourinho served as a coach under Sir Bobby Robson. - PSG are unbeaten in 28 European home games with their last loss coming in the UEFA Cup group stage against Hapoel Tel-Aviv in 2006 - PSG's only other European Cup semifinal came in 1994/95 when they lost out to AC Milan - Chelsea are looking to book their place in a seventh semifinal in 11 campaigns. - Chelsea faces a familiar face in Alex who made 135 appearances for the club between 2007 and 2012. Other players to have served both clubs are Claude Makelele, Nicolas Anelka and Mateja Kezman while Carlo Ancelotti led both sides to domestic titles. - Chelsea have kept a competition high 5 cleansheets in their 8 Champions League games this season, They are yet to concede a first half goal in that run too. - Chelsea lost their last knockout tie against French opposition (vs Monaco in 2004) - Chelsea are unbeaten in their last eight Champions League knockout games (W5 D3) going back 2 years and 3 managers Match Coverage UK - Sky Sports 1/HD US - Fox Sports 1 USA France - Canal+ France Australia - ESPN Australia Middle East - beIN sports Belgium - Belgacom 11+ Brazil - ESPN For additional regions, you can check out the TV schedule for the match here. There should be many match streams that can be found online if your local sports channels are not broadcasting the game or if you happen to be busy and cannot catch the game live, follow TalkChelsea on Twitter as it would provide live match commentary on the action. Click here to view article

that was a good touch

i don't think a striker is the answer to all the problems in attack. few players Willian, Oscar, Schurrle who are all still adapting, need to improve. Become a bit more consistent

No. I don't think Mourinho told the players to try long shots/long balls. After the Everton game, he said that the team was getting hurried into long balls and that should not happen. i think it's more to do with the team lacking ideas in attack in games like Palace away. Lot of times, the ball ends up 35 yards from goal with no movement in front of the ball. so Luiz, Matic, Ivanovic all decided to have a pop. No one got anywhere near the goal a better striker would settle Chelsea more games but the lack of chances is created is also an issue. not down to just a change of striker

Maybe he meant that the traffic is bad around the stadium

It's 21 shots not 21 chances. Big difference. Maybe 2 chances created - Schurrle (counter) and Hazard's chance that's all. The team looked lost in attack - trying long balls very often

Doesn't normally play back to back games (after Matic was signed). but he did start home and away to Gala. so it's not certain

PSG fans, like the Napoli, Benfica, Gala fans talking a lot before the game

Mourinho did not expect to win the title. He downplayed expectations as much as possible

yeah. fair enough. most of the 21 attempts were either long shots or chances created through setpieces. need to find a way to break down teams

Not at all true. Taking only the Palace game - Most of Chelsea's shots were from 35 yards when the team couldn't find a way through whereas Palace had a lot of dangerous attacks Only dangerous Chelsea attack was Azpi cross to Schurrle that somehow stayed out

Liverpool match maybe complicated by a potential CL semis

Constant Back five - best in the league really. it's the attack that goes missing in some games but then again Willian, Schurrle, Salah in their first season here, Oscar is still approaching his prime and the less said about the strikers the better Getting this far without good strikers is an achievement in itself. The stretch of games from December to March, the team was producing the goods week in week out.

yeah. so were city, so were liverpool.