Michael Owen has claimed that it would be 'typical' for Thomas Tuchel's Chelsea team to sit back and nick a goal on the break against Lille in the Champions League.
The Blues come into the second leg of their Champions League Round of 16 tie against Jocelyn Gourvennec's side looking to hammer home their 2-0 advantage from the first leg. Kai Havertz and Christian Pulisic had given Tuchel's side the lead in the Stamford Bridge leg nearly two weeks ago and a lot has changed since then with the club a lot more destabilised due to what has happened in the meantime. The governments and the EU's decision to sanction owner and Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich has meant that the players have been playing with a lot of uncertainty surrounding the club regarding ownership issues and day to day running of the Blues.
There are even some suggestions that the west Londoners could have their travel plans thrown into doubt but thankfully, the Lille bookings for transport and accommodation were made before the government's intervention. Unfortunately, this will not be the case for the Middlesbrough game with travel arrangements still being discussed with a gruelling coach trip up north on the cards currently.
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Regardless, Havertz and the players have already admitted that they would pay their own travel fees if necessary in the short-term. "I would pay, it's no problem," the German said in the pre-match press conference ahead of the trip to France. "That's not a big deal for us.
"For us to come to the games, that's the most important thing. I think there are a lot of harder things in the world at the moment if we have to take the train or the bus to an away game. I would pay. It's no problem." Back onto the football pitch specifically, the hosts for this second leg drew their game at the weekend against Saint Etienne whilst Chelsea snuck past Newcastle in dramatic style.
Despite this, Tuchel isn't underestimating an opposition that he has come up against on numerous occasions in the past whilst Paris Saint-Germain manager. Plus, Florent Malouda's admission on their dangerous four players who could end up hurting Chelsea at the Stade Pierre Mauroy on Wednesday night has reminded all that this Wednesday night fixture isn't a full gone conclusion just yet.
"To be honest, I think they played well at Stamford Bridge. Very physical, attacked high up the pitch. It was impressive. They had a good pressing game, they were very brave and had the mentality that they had nothing to lose and we expect the same thing tomorrow," the German said in his pre-match press conference on Tuesday. "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 give everything to put pressure on us and ask questions of us. They play an attacking 442. They are fluid, aggressive and direct.
"We have to be ready for that. We are also confident in ourselves. It’s halftime right now. No match is decided by a 2-0 score. The second half is tomorrow and we need another top performance. Lille played Friday so had a good amount of time to recover. That’s why we have to be ready physically and mentally for a tough game."
With all taken into account, Owen has predicted that the Blues could have to soak up a lot of pressure throughout the second 90 minutes but the former England international has backed the current World and European Champions to clam a 'typical' Tuchel result via a performance that fans have been accustom to since his arrival back at the start of 2021.
He predicted: “Chelsea are in the driving seat ahead of this one. These types of matches are Thomas Tuchel’s bread and butter. Sit in, give nothing away, and when it comes to the point where Lille must throw everything forward, it’d be just typical that Chelsea nick one. It’s 1-0 to the Blues for me.”
You can follow coverage of Lille vs Chelsea in the Champions League on football.london's live blog here.
