Thomas Tuchel has been handed a boost in his options for the trip to Lille with Marcos Alonso and Cesar Azpilicueta available to start the clash. The Blues boss was without Azpilicueta, Reece James and Callum Hudson-Odoi in addition to Ben Chilwell against Newcastle United - a situation that saw him opt for a 'creative' solution.
Marcos Alonso made the bench against the Magpies but saw Malang Sarr start at left back before being replaced by Christian Pulisic at Stamford Bridge. The situation is less positive for James and Hudson-Odoi with Tuchel explaining that it would be very tight for them to make the squad to face the French champions.
He said: "Marcos is ready to start. Azpi is ready to start. [Reece James and Callum Hudson-Odoi] We will try to have them later in training but it will be a very, very tight race. This decision we will take later, after the training session but as you know they were not involved and the injuries they had. Let's see if it is worth the risk or if it's even possible. It will be very, very tight."
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Azpilicueta was ruled out after being substituted against Norwich City on Thursday. The defender suffered from stomach problems leaving Ruben Loftus-Cheek to fill in as a wing-back on that occasion.
Tuchel announced at the weekend that James had suffered a 're-injury' after undergoing some muscular issues in his comeback from the hamstring issue that kept him out for a number of months. Callum Hudson-Odoi has been dealing with an Achilles issues.
The German coach also assessed how his opponents might fair with Renato Sanches. The Portuguese star started the first leg at Stamford Bridge.
Tuchel said: "To be honest, I think they played well at Stamford Bridge. They were very physical, attacked high up the pitch. It was impressive. They had a good pressing game, were very brave, and had the mentality they had nothing to lose.
"I know the stadium well and the atmosphere the fans create. They will want to win and have nothing to lose. I know they like being in these situations and they will give everything to put the pressure on us and ask questions of us.
"They will play an attacking 4-4-2 that is aggresive, fluid and direct. We'll have to be ready for that. But we are also confident in ourselves. It's half time right now. No match is decided by a 2-0 scoreline. The second half is tomorrow and we'll have to produce another top performance.
"I think Lille played on Friday so they've had a good amount of time to recover. That is why we have to be ready physically and mentally for a tough game."
