5 things Chelsea must be aware of against PSG

Chelsea vs PSG was a quarter-final fixture in the Champions League last season where Laurent Blanc and his men went to Stamford Bridge with a 3-1 advantage from the first leg. PSG fans were optimistic as they were supposed to be. And it was all going well until Demba Ba scored a goal in the 86th minute to give Chelsea a 2-0 win and a place in the semi-finals.It was a devastating blow for the French club. At that point, they had a 13-point advantage in the French Ligue 1 and Chelsea were lagging behind Liverpool and Manchester City in the EPL. Right now, however, the tides have reversed PSG trail Lyon by a point and Chelsea are 5 points clear of their nearest rival, Manchester City.If history repeats itself following the same pattern, then Chelsea might as well bow out of the Champions League after tonight. However, for that to not happen, here are 5 things they must be aware of.

#1 The threat of Zlatan Ibrahimovic

Simply put, Ibrahimovic is a game-changer. In football, there are a very few players who can turn the tide of a game single-handed. Zlatan Ibrahimovic is one of them. While he doesn’t have a great record in big games, he can never be ignored given his unique skillset as a footballer. The one way to describe him best would be: he is very predictable about one thing – being unpredictable. No one can ever really know what he is going to say or do next.

He could be anonymous in the whole game, but then – out of nowhere – score a peach of a goal which would later go on to become viral on YouTube. And he is in the form to do something like that. He has scored 3 goals in his last 4 games and looks fully recovered from the injury he suffered earlier this season.

In the first leg, Ibrahimovic had a decent game, but far from what he is capable of. Gary Cahill and John Terry didn’t have much trouble dealing with the physical and aerial threat that he possesses, although the Swedish forward did have a couple of half-decent chances to score. However, now that he is fully fit, they might have a harder time repeating that.

And Jose Mourinho knows exactly what he is capable of. The Portuguese knows that when Ibrahimovic is on fire, no amount of water can extinguish it. Thus, Terry and Cahill must have to be on their toes while facing him tonight – and, definitely, the Special One must have instructed them how.

#2 Over-defensive tactics

We are all aware of how Mourinho likes to go about in a second-leg clash where his team don’t have to score in order to progress to the next round. His tactical masterclass against Barcelona in the semi-final clash in 2010 got Inter to the final of the competition, where they went on to win and lift the trophy. That system from Inter was the closest thing the world saw to a Catenaccio system post-Helenio Herrera era – and, probably, will ever see.

It was beautiful; a master-class defensive performance. Even though many members of the football righteousness community labelled Inter as an anti-footballing team, it can’t be denied that they played the best defensive football any team had played in a long time.

However, doing the same against PSG would be wrong – simply because they don’t have the two goal cushion like Inter had against Barcelona. One goal from PSG and Chelsea will be chasing the game – and Mourinho is aware of that.

And hence it would be best if Chelsea play their natural counter-attacking football – especially since they are in front of their own fans. This Chelsea team is filled with creative midfielders who perhaps aren’t best suited for Catenaccio-esque tactics.

#3 Giving Marco Verratti too much space and time

Marco Verratti was dubbed as the next Pirlo by many when he was rising up the ranks in Italy. He was snapped up from Pescara by PSG before Juventus could and he has steadily risen ever since – and he is on his way to reach the huge potential he possesses. Very few players of his age control the midfield with the guile that he does. The way he stamps his authority is reminiscent of the man he is supposed to succeed.

When given space and time, he can use it to a devastating effect. Tactically, the most important for player a team is the one who sits in front of the defence – he is the starter of the attacks and controls the flow of the game. The holder is the engine of the team and if the holder is a creative player, it adds more dimensions to the attack.

There is no need to state how creative the Italian is. Like Matic is for Chelsea, he is PSG’s most important player. If he is given the time to settle down and the space to operate in – not that he needs much of both anyway – he can run the whole show, with his team – and also the hosts – moving according to his wizardry.

In the previous game, Nemanja Matic did a fine job, pressing and marking him. The Serb never allowed him time or space on the ball and that was the reason why PSG could never really play with the flow they usually do. The same must be done this time in order to stop the young Italian. Stopping him would be directly equivalent to stopping PSG’s attack as a whole.

#4 Over-aggressive tackles on Eden Hazard

To be fair, there is no precaution for this. Eden Hazard is one of those very exceptionally talented players who become the unfortunate victims of vicious tackles.

It isn’t easy to contain a player as electrifying as him. He is quick, makes mazy runs and is very creative. His nimble footwork makes it extremely difficult for defenders to time their tackles perfectly in order to get the ball off him. And sometimes, defenders purposely try to hurt Hazard to intimidate him to prevent him from playing his natural game. In any case, Hazard must be absolutely ready with solid shin pads and an adamantine mentality as he is a key player who can change the game all by himself.

One way to tackle this would be to take the aid of the darker arts of the game: simulation and theatrics. When tackles are coming in rough and hard, falling on the ground quicker than the speed of light becomes a good tactic to put some restraint in the minds of the tacklers, especially with bookings in Champions League being more dangerous in the long run compared to bookings in the league.

#5 Do not desert Nemanja Matic

Diego Costa might have done the bulk of scoring for Chelsea and Cesc Fabregas might have produced the most assists – but it is Nemanja Matic who has been the best player of the Blues this season. He is one of the most complete midfielders in the modern game; he can pass, he can defend, he covers a lot of ground and is great aerially as well. It is these qualities that have made him the best holding midfielder in Europe on current form.

Sitting at the base of midfield, he breaks the play of the opposition and starts attacks with clever passes. Alongside him are his partners in crime, Cesc Fabregas and the more expressive Oscar. It is a very balanced midfield trio as each player complements the other.

However, due to the attacking natures of both Fabregas and Oscar, there are times when Matic is left stranded, all alone to guard the backline. Doing this against a team of PSG’s calibre could be lethal as it doesn’t take them long to punish a team that leaves their deepest midfielder stranded.

Imagine a situation where Edinson Cavani, Javier Pastore and Zlatan Ibrahimovic, together, are up against a deserted Matic – the gaps would be exploited more than the loopholes in FIFA’s Financial Fairplay Policy.

The one and only thing that the Serbian lacks is pace, and so do John Terry and Gary Cahill. However, pace is something PSG attackers have in abundance and hence leaving Matic alone in midfield could end up being the cause of Chelsea’s destruction.

Another problem with marooning the Serbian is that it becomes easier for the opponents to close him down and hence cut off Chelsea’s supply lines. So leaving the former Benfica man forlorn is not only going to hurt Chelsea defensively, but also in terms of building attacks. Hence, Fabregas and Oscar must keep their horses under control and do their share to help the midfield general of Chelsea.