In what will be the first European match since the Super League debacle, Eden Hazard will have the chance to meet his former club when Real Madrid hosts Chelsea in the first leg of the UEFA Champions League semifinals on Tuesday.
Due to a series of injuries, Hazard hasn’t featured much for Real Madrid since his €100 million ($113 million) transfer from Chelsea that set a Real transfer record in the summer of 2019. In a scoreless draw with Real Betis over the weekend, the Belgian international featured for the first time since March 13 and is in the team to face Chelsea, though he’ll begin on the bench.
Real Madrid manager Zinedine Zidane will be hoping that Hazard can provide a spark to his club’s sputtering attack. Three of Real’s last four matches since its El Clásico win against Barcelona on April 10 have ended in scoreless draws, including its Champions League quarterfinal second leg with Liverpool that saw Los Blancos advance on a 3-1 aggregate.
How to Watch
Time: 3 p.m. ET
TV channel: CBS Sports Network, Univision, TUDN
Live Stream: You can watch the match on fuboTV. Sign up now for a free seven-day trial. You can also view it via Paramount+ (formerly CBS All Access).
Lineups:
Real Madrid XI: Courtois; Carvajal, Varane, Militão, Nacho, Marcelo; Modrić Casemiro, Kroos; Benzema, Vinicius.
Chelsea XI: Mendy; Christensen, Silva, Rudiger, Chilwell, Azpilicueta; Kante, Jorginho; Pulisic, Werner, Mount.
Chelsea will play in its eighth UEFA Champions League semifinal—the most of any English club—but must get past a Real Madrid side in its ninth semifinal in the last 11 seasons if it hopes to repeat its 2012 Champions League success.
After advancing to the FA Cup final with a win against Manchester City on April 17, Chelsea ended a busy week by beating West Ham on Saturday to give itself a three-point cushion in fourth place. The Blues advanced to the Champions League semifinals by edging past Porto despite losing the second leg 1-0.
With his start, Christian Pulisic becomes the third American to feature in the Champions League semifinals, following DaMarcus Beasley (2005) and Tyler Adams (2020).
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