Chelsea vs. Real Madrid, Women's Champions League: Preview, team news, how to watch
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Death, taxes, Chelsea meeting Real Madrid in the UEFA Women's Champions League: these seem to be the three inevitable things in our lives.
By winning the league, Chelsea got a spot directly in the Champions League group stage once again ... and we're once again meeting Las Blancas there. It's written in the stars, I tell ya!
One notable change from last year is that this time around, we'll have the first encounter at Stamford Bridge. Hopefully results will see us claim victory once again, just as in the previous two terms.
Date / Time: Tuesday, October 8, 2024, 20.00 BST; 3:00pm EDT; 12:30am (next day) IST
Venue: Stamford Bridge, SW6, London, UK
Referee: Ivana Martinčić (CRO)
Forecast: Light rain and a gentle breeze
On TV: none (US); none (UK); elsewhere
Streaming: DAZN (US); DAZN (UK)
Chelsea team news: Following a tough matchup against Aston Villa to open the season, Chelsea found some goalscoring boots and applied them to great effect in a 7-0 trouncing of Women's Super League newcomers Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park. Guro Reiten was the star of the night with two goals, one of which was assisted by new signing Wieke Kaptein.
In less great news, head coach Sonia Bompastor has an injury list just as long as her predecessor last season, with Aniek Nouwen, Niamh Charles, Oriane Jean-François, Sophie Ingle, Sam Kerr and Mia Fishel all out of contention. Given the level of challenge Madrid will bring, we could see Mayra Ramírez return to the starting lineup after giving way to Aggie Beever-Jones last week.
Real Madrid team news: With 11 players leaving the club this summer, Real Madrid entered the market with lots of shoes to fill. In this process they ended up acquiring one of our own, midfielder Melanie Leupolz, putting an end to her four-year spell at Chelsea.
On the pitch they started the season strongly, with seven wins on the bounce since opening the season with a 5-0 win over Espanyol in Liga F. They also beat Portuguese outfit Sporting CP 5-2 on aggregate over two legs in the qualifying round, to earn a spot in the group stage.
Their injury department must be bored, with midfielder Sandie Toletti listed as the only concern after leaving the pitch 14 minutes into their 1-0 win over Valencia last Friday. Everyone else is expected to be available including Leupolz, who got her first goal and first assist for her new club in the first leg of the aforementioned Sporting CP matchup.
Previously: Guro from the spot and a Mylène Chavas' own goal gave the Blues a 2-1 win at the Bridge in the penultimate match of last season's group stage.
