The defending UCL champion is close to securing a spot in the quarterfinal. It’s because Chelsea beat Lille 2-0 in their first duel, which happened in London some three weeks ago. This Wednesday, the two meet again, but this time, the match is played in France at Lille’s home venue, Stade Pierre-Mauroy.
Online sportsbooks are certain Chelsea will advance to the next phase of the Champions League. The proof of this is that the odds on Chelsea qualifying for the quarterfinals are as short as -3333. But what will happen in Wednesday’s game? Chelsea doesn’t have to win or even play a draw to advance further.
The Blues don’t have to do it, but bookmakers think they will. They see Chelsea as the favorite at -111. Are they right to think so? Keep on reading to find out!
Lille vs Chelsea Odds (Champions League, 2022)
All odds are per bet365 as of March 14.
1X2
Lille+309Draw+250Chelsea-111
Over/Under
Over 2.5-101Under 2.5-110
Where and When to WatchDate: Wednesday, March 16Time: 3:00 PM EDTLocation: Stade Pierre-Mauroy in Villeneuve d’Ascq, FranceWatch: CBS SportsLille to Cash In on Its Good Recent Form?
The French champion 7BALL started the 2021-22 season slowly, but in recent weeks, we’ve seen them playing much better than before. Nevertheless, Lille is still far from the #1 position in the French Ligue 1. In fact, the team is also far away from the spots that lead to the Champions League.
However, their recent form suggests we could see them climbing a few spots up in the table. Their domestic league future seems bright but what about their Champions League campaign? Things don’t look good there, the reason being that their opponent in Round of 16 is one of Europe’s best teams.
Still, Lille did put on a good fight in the first duel with Chelsea. Sure, the Blues did end up winning 2-0, but Lille was the team with more goal chances. They failed to score three weeks ago, but maybe they could do it this time?
Despite Ownership Problems, Chelsea Keeps Winning
Chelsea is in trouble – its owner Roman Abramovich got sanctioned by the UK Government for his ties with Russian President Vladimir Putin. As a result of the sanctions, all of his UK assets were frozen, including his ownership of Chelsea.
The result is that the club no longer has the right to sign new players nor offer new contracts to the players currently in the club. What this means is that several players are likely to leave the club after the end of the season, including Chelsea captain Caesar Azpilicueta.
Another problem is that Chelsea cannot sell more tickets, meaning that only fans with season tickets will be able to attend the matches. All this has probably disrupted the atmosphere in Chelsea’s locker room. Still, the Blues haven’t been showing it on the pitch.
In fact, Chelsea has won its previous four games, scoring 11 goals along the way, while conceding just three. Still, truth be told, Chelsea had an easy job in all those games. In the three Premier League games the Blues won, their opponents were Burnley, Norwich, and Newcastle, all of which are sitting near the bottom of the table.
Further, Chelsea also defeated Luton in the FA Cup, a team from the Championship. Despite playing in the English second tier, Luton was able to score twice against Chelsea, with the final score being 3-2 for the Blues.
Lille vs Chelsea Prediction
To qualify, Lille would need to win by at least three goals. That seems like a mission impossible for this team, although they will probably try it. Actually, we could see them grabbing a win or at least a draw on Wednesday. Still, Chelsea is likely to be the team to get to the quarterfinals.
Picks: Lille to Win; Over 2.5 Goals
