CHAMPIONS CHELSEA CONTINUE TITLE DEFENCE AGAINST LILLE. PREDICTION .
UEFA Champions League holders Chelsea begin their knockout tie at home to French side Lille on Tuesday evening.
The Blues could only finish second in Group H to set up a tie with the Ligue 1 champions, who topped the rankings in a tricky Group G.
The hosts come into the first leg on the back of a narrow 1-0 win against Crystal Palace on Saturday.
Meanwhile, Lille are coming off a barren draw with Metz and need to find inspiration if they are to avoid deafeat.
Lille have only ever reached the last-16 on one previous occasion, going down to Manchester United in 2006-07.
The visitors also suffered back-to-back 2-1 defeats to Chelsea in the group stage of the 2019-20 tournament. Will Chelsea continue their fine form and get all three points?
What time does Chelsea vs Lille start?
The game kicks off at 20pm UCT time at Stamford Bridge.
Chelsea vs Lille team news
Mason Mount has an slight ankle injury and will not be risked for this game, joining Cesar Azpilicueta and Callum Hudson-Odoi on the sidelines.
Reece James is also unlikely to feature, meaning Andreas Christensen will start.
The front three is likely to feature Hakim Ziyech, Timo Werner and Christian Pulisic after Romelu Lukaku has yet another poor show over the weekend.
For the visitors, Hatem Ben-Arfa and Timothy Weah are both pushing for a spot in the starting XI.
Renato Sanches may also start the game as Turkish forward Burak Yilmaz leads the attack.
Chelsea vs Lille head to head
These teams have played twice against each other in the past and Chelsea have won both times.
Chelsea vs Lille current form
Thomas Tuchel’s side come into the game on a five-match winning streak.
Lille on the other hand have only won twice in their recent run of five matches.
Chelsea vs Lille prediction
Despite the few injury concerns, the home team have the quality and capability to win and take an advantage into the second leg.
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