Todd Boehly will be hoping that Chelsea can get past Borussia Dortmund for a bit more than just pride. It is his first home Champions League knockout tie as co-owner and if things go wrong, may well be the last for a while. With the Blues looking extreme outsiders for a top four finish, winnng the competition is nearly their only chance of getting back in it for next season.
They will also have to do something that hasn't been achieved at the club since 2014, overturning a first leg defecit to progress. With Thiago Silva missing, the task has also gotten harder since the away trip to Germany three weeks ago.
In the time since the 1-0 loss at Signal Iduna Park Chelsea have won just once, the victory over Leeds on Saturday. It was the first time they have come out on top since January 15 and was a much needed confidence booster. Dortmund, on the other hand, made it ten wins from as many games since the World Cup by beating RB Leipzig on Friday.
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It is all set-up to be a blockbuster tie at Stamford Bridge and Boehly will be watching on eagerly from the stands yet again after witnessing the Leeds match in his directors box before showing commitment to the women's side, attending their unsuccessful Conti Cup final game against Arsenal on Sunday.
He will be hoping for a better outcome at SW6 on Tuesday with much more than just a quarter final place at stake. Not only would failing to progress prompt further questions regarding Graham Potter's future, it also deals a major financial blow to the club.
With £13.48 million pocketed straight away just for group stage qualification, the Champions League truly is the premier club competition and it is the most lucrative as well. There was an additional £12m banked for winning five group stage games - at a cost of £2.4m per win - plus the £8.2m for last-16 qualification.
If it all ends there for Chelsea then a healthy £33.68m would be taken in from the competition. There are much bigger goals here though and with consecutive quarter final appearances as well as the 2021 win, Boehly will be hoping that the journey can go on for longer.
Overcoming Dortmund earns an extra £9.1m with £10.7m more awaiting the four semi-finalists. Should the Blues manage to reach their fourth Champions League final they would be due a £13.3m payment, if a third star is added to their shirts at the start of next season and the trophy is lifted by the west Londoners again then £3.8m is added to the prizepot.
In total this could come out at a mouth-watering £70.9m for Chelsea and that is before coefficient shares or market pools are calculated too. At that price alone though, Chelsea could pay off all of their winter signings and Wesley Fofana from the summer for one and a half year of ammortized value.
Although it is the prize of Champions League football and the trophy itself that would prove to be the biggest success for Boehly and Co, the monetary incentive is also clear to see.
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