Chelsea lock horns with Atletico
Chelsea will take on Atletico Madrid in the first leg of their last-16 Champions League clash on Tuesday night, with the fixture being held in Romania due to coronavirus protocols over travel.
The match is technically Atletico's home leg despite the fact that it is not taking place in Spain, with the reverse fixture due to take place in London in the middle of March.
Tuesday's contest in Romania will be the first time that they have locked horns with Chelsea since the group stages of the 2017-18 Champions League, with the English club winning 2-1 in Madrid before the points were shared in a 1-1 draw at Stamford Bridge.
Last season's chastening 7-1 aggregate loss to Bayern condemned Chelsea to a fourth successive round of 16 elimination, and on form that run is expected to continue. The Blues impressed in the group stage, winning 4-0 at Sevilla, but have since stuttered, replacing head coach Frank Lampard with Thomas Tuchel in January. Meanwhile, Atletico (who ended Liverpool's defence at this stage 12 month ago) are making a strong bid for their first Liga title since 2013-14.
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