Chelsea and Lille meet in the UEFA Champions League round of 16 first leg on Tuesday.
Though Chelsea were only runners-up in their group, progress was fairly straightforward for Thomas Tuchel’s holders with their three home games all ending in victories and clean sheets.
LOSC, by contrast, had to wait until the final match to qualify with their 3-1 success at Wolfsburg sealing their round of 16 place and a 2-1 triumph at Sevilla on Matchday 4 pivotal to their ascent to the Group G summit.
Possible line-ups
Chelsea: Mendy; Thiago Silva, Rüdiger, Christensen; Azpilicueta, Jorginho, Kanté, Alonso; Ziyech, Lukaku, Pulišić
LOSC: Jardim; Zeki Çelik, Fonte, Botman, Gudmundsson; Weah, André, Xeka, Bamba; Burak Yılmaz, David
Thomas Tuchel, Chelsea manager: “We all know how physical French football is, how physical the attacking players are, how brave they are in one-on-ones, very disciplined against the ball, and [LOSC] have the chance to play this game as underdogs. It will be like always: we respect the game, respect the opponent, and prepare the team as we always do.”
Jocelyn Gourvennec, LOSC coach: “We had a difficult start in the Champions League [this season]. No one saw us finishing top of the group, but we defied expectations. It will be an extra step tomorrow against the defending champions. It’s an enormous challenge.”
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