Manchester City v Chelsea Champions League Final Special – The Opposition

We’re very nearly there. Only Chelsea stand in the way of City being crowned champions of Europe for the first time. The blues have lost twice two Thomas Tuchel’s side, but on each occasion, it has been with a fairly weakened side, which won’t happen on Saturday.

So let’s take a look at Chelsea and their route to the Champions League final in Porto.

The London blues got a fairly kind draw for the group stages, being paired with Sevilla, FC Krasnodar and Rennes, and started their campaign at home to the Spanish outfit.

Sevilla held Chelsea to a goalless draw at Stamford Bridge in October, however the West London side travelled to Krasnodar a week later and comfortably won their first away match 4-0. A 3-0 home win over Rennes was followed up with a 2-1 win in France three weeks later.

Chelsea scored another four on their travels, this time at Sevilla, winning 4-0 on Spanish soil. However, their home form continued to be erratic as they were held to a 1-1 draw with Krasnodar, topping the group by 1 point from Sevilla.

Last 16

Chelsea were handed a tough last 16 tie when they were paired with Atletico Madrid. The blues won the away leg 1-0, before finishing the job with a 2-0 home victory.

Quarter Final

Chelsea also faced Porto, however their match was in the quarter final and they did the damage in the first leg. A 2-0 away win saw the blues through, although they lost the home leg 1-0 to a late goal.

Semi Final

Real Madrid stood between Chelsea and a place in the final, and when the blues took home a 1-1 draw from Spain, their Champions League fate was in their own hands. Just like City, the blues won the home leg 2-0, winning 3-1 on aggregate to set up an all-English final once again.

Form Against English Sides

In 2011, Chelsea were drawn against Manchester United in the quarter final, losing 3-1 on aggregate. In 2009, Chelsea beat Liverpool 7-5 on aggregate. After winning 3-1 at Anfield, Chelsea were 2-0 down in the second leg, but came back to lead 3-2. Liverpool hit back to lead 4-3, only for Chelsea to level in the 89^th minute.

The two also met a year earlier, with Chelsea going through 4-3 on aggregate in the semi-final, however they lost the final to United. And in 2007, Liverpool put the blues out on penalties after their tie ended 1-1. Liverpool also put Chelsea out in 2005 when they won their semi-final tie 1-0.

So a huge mixed bag of results against English sides in the Champions League, let’s hope their erratic form continues on Saturday.