5 reasons why Chelsea will beat Barcelona

#1 Antonio Conte

Conte already has a successful blueprint to beat Barcelona

If Chelsea has a decent chance of beating Barcelona, then it all boils down to their manager Antonio Conte. While rumors circle around the Italian's future at Stamford Bridge, the Blues need every bit of his passion, experience, and, tactical nous if they want to overcome the La Liga leaders.

The former Juventus player and manager's counter-attacking 3-5-2 system is the anti-thesis for Barcelona's possession-based game and the 48-year old has the right players at his disposal to execute a previously successful blueprint. In the UEFA Euro 2016, Italy beat one of the tournament favorites, Spain, comprehensively to win 2-0. That day, the Azzurri put on a tactical masterclass, masterminded by none other than Conte himself.

Quality defense with good passing abilities, high-intensity full-backs marauding the flanks, a free-running midfielder to disrupt Spain's system and a robust centre-forward up top proved vital in Italy's win. Now, Spain's possession-based football stems primarily from Barcelona's style of play. While it has been tweaked in recent times by Luis Enrique and Valverde, the Catalan side's game remains the same at the core. Thus, Conte and Chelsea are well-equipped to deal with Barcelona's threat, despite the presence of Messi and Suarez.

The backline consisting of the likes of Cesar Azpilicueta and Andreas Christensen can both defend and launch attacks. N'Golo Kante remains a superb destroyer and can single-handedly disrupt the flow of an aging Iniesta as well as that of either Ivan Rakitic or Paulinho. Hazard can wreak havoc playing as a left-sided attacker or as a second striker. Either of Morata or Giroud are adept at leading the line and are good headers of the ball, which will allow Chelsea to exploit one of Barcelona's few weaknesses, set-pieces.

Conte has the tactics and personnel required to beat Barcelona and if he can rally his troops for the biggest game of their season yet, then it will be Chelsea's name in the quarterfinals draw next month.