Frank Lampard's start to life back at Chelsea has not gone according to plan.
The Blues have lost all three of their games under Lampard, who was appointed on an interim basis earlier in April following Graham Potter's dismissal.
That run included a 2-0 defeat at Real Madrid in the first leg of a Champions League quarter-final tie, with Los Blancos heading to Stamford Bridge on Tuesday with a club record in their sights.
Tuesday's other game sees Serie A leaders Napoli go up against Milan, who lead 1-0 from the first leg of that all-Italian encounter.
With the help of Opta numbers, Stats Perform previews the first two Champions League matches of the week.
Chelsea v Real Madrid: Los Blancos hunting sixth straight knockout win
Madrid have won their last five Champions League knockout matches, their joint-longest winning run in knockout games in the competition.
All five wins have come against English teams, with only Barcelona (seven in a row between 2014 and 2016) having a longer winning run against English clubs.
Karim Benzema scored Madrid's opener in last week's 2-0 win at Santiago Bernabeu. The striker's last 11 Champions League goals have come against English teams, while his last 14 have all been in the knockout stages of the competition, the longest such run by a player in Champions League history. Benzema has 14 goals and two assists for Madrid in his last nine appearances in the knockout stages.
Madrid's second was teed up by Vinicius Junior, who has been involved in 20 goals in his last 20 Champions League appearances, scoring 10 goals and assisting 10 goals in this time. Since the start of last season, the Brazil winger is the only player to reach double figures for both goals and assists in the competition.
Madrid have progressed from 18 of their 19 Champions League ties after winning the first leg by two or more goals, failing only in 2003-04 against Monaco in the quarter-finals.
Chelsea do have some hope, however. They have progressed from five of their last seven Champions League ties when losing the first leg away from home, and done so in each of the last two when losing by two clear goals (vs Napoli in 2011-12 and Paris Saint-Germain in 2013-14).
The Blues have lost two of their last three European matches against Madrid (W1), both in Champions League quarter-finals across the last two campaigns. They had not lost any of their first five against them before this (W3 D2).
Napoli v Milan: Serie A leaders out to avoid third Rossoneri reverse
Napoli have already lost twice to Milan in April, losing 4-0 in Serie A at the Diego Armando Maradona Stadium and 1-0 at San Siro in the first leg of this tie. The last side to beat them three times in one season was Lazio in the 1994-95 campaign.
The omens are good for Milan, who have won their last three away matches against Napoli, all in Serie A, their joint longest away winning run against them.
Milan have not reached the Champions League semi-finals since the 2006-07 season, when they went on to win the competition. They have only been eliminated twice after winning the first leg of a knockout tie – in 2003-04 v Deportivo de La Coruna in the quarter-final (4-1 first leg, 0-4 second leg) and 2012-13 v Barcelona in the last 16 (2-0 first leg, 0-4 second leg).
Napoli are, however, unbeaten in their last 12 home Champions League matches (W9 D3) since a 4-2 defeat to Manchester City in November 2017. They have won their four home games this season, scoring at least three goals in each victory.
That being said, Napoli have been eliminated from their last 10 European knockout ties after losing the first leg, last progressing to the next round after suffering a first-leg deficit in the 1988-89 UEFA Cup quarter-final against Juventus.
Olivier Giroud could be crucial for Milan. The veteran campaigner has been directly involved in six goals in nine appearances in the Champions League this season (four goals and two assists) – the most by a Milan player in a single campaign since Zlatan Ibrahimovic in the 2011-12 campaign (nine – five goals and four assists).
Dujon Sterling ‘thrilled’ to sign Rangers deal after ending Chelsea career
Rangers have announced the signing of Chelsea right-back Dujon Sterling.
The 23-year-old will join on a four-year contract on July 1 when his Chelsea deal expires.
The versatile player made two substitute outings for Chelsea in cup competitions but has made more than 100 first-team appearances across loan spells with Coventry, Wigan, Blackpool and Stoke. He played 28 times this season with Sky Bet Championship side Stoke.
Rangers manager Michael Beale told his club’s official website: “I am delighted to welcome Dujon to Rangers, he is an exciting young player who, I’m sure, will be a great addition to our squad.
“He is someone I was aware of from my time at Chelsea, and I have always kept an eye on his career as it has progressed.
“He is a very powerful and strong defender, who has fantastic attacking qualities and I look forward to working with him at Rangers.”
Sterling added: “I am really excited to come to such a big club, there’s a lot of history and the supporters are so passionate, so I am thrilled.
“I wasn’t expecting to make my mind up about my future this quickly, but the gaffer came in for me straight away and what he proposed to me was everything that I believe I need.
“We were on the same wavelength, he believes in me and I believe in what he is trying to do as well so it was a no-brainer for me to come.”
Chelsea appoint Chris Jurasek as chief exec with Tom Glick also leaving his role
Chelsea have announced the appointment of Chris Jurasek as their new chief executive while president of business Tom Glick is set to leave after less than a year in his role.
The Blues’ 12th-place Premier League finish in owners’ the Clearlake group’s first season has led to Mauricio Pochettino being named head coach and tasked with improving their on-field fortunes.
Further upheaval off the pitch came with the announcement that Jurasek will oversee all business areas at Chelsea and report to the board alongside co-sporting directors Laurence Stewart and Paul Winstanley.
“I’m delighted to be joining Chelsea, a club which is loved and followed all over the world,” Jurasek said. “I’m enormously proud to be leading it into the next chapter in its rich history.
“We have huge opportunities to grow on and off the pitch and to engage our exceptional fans both in London and wherever they are supporting us from.”
Behdad Eghbali and Jose E Feliciano, co-controlling owners, said: “Chris’ skill and expertise will help us to drive the club forward in all areas, particularly in supporting our long-term plans for Chelsea.
“Our focus will continue to be on ensuring the club is competitive and sustainable both from a sporting and business perspective, with a talented and ambitious leadership team.”
Former Manchester City executive Glick will be exiting the club, having only been appointed last July – although no departure date was announced by the club, who said the former president of NFL franchise the Carolina Panthers wanted “to pursue other opportunities”.
Glick will work closely with Jurasek in the coming months to ensure a smooth transition before leaving.
Mauricio Pochettino appointed Chelsea head coach on two-year contract
Mauricio Pochettino has been appointed Chelsea head coach on a two-year deal.
The former Tottenham manager, who has been out of work since leaving Paris St Germain last year, will take over from interim boss Frank Lampard – who oversaw his final game in charge against Newcastle in the Premier League on Sunday.
It brings to an end an almost two-month process to find a permanent successor to Graham Potter, who was sacked on April 2.
The PA news agency understands Pochettino had been the club’s first choice from early in the search, which was led by co-sporting directors Paul Winstanley and Laurence Stewart.
He was the only candidate the club got into serious talks with, despite conversations that took place with former Bayern Munich boss Julian Nagelsmann, ex-Spain coach Luis Enrique and Burnley’s Vincent Kompany.
It is understood that, contrary to reports that Pochettino had sought reassurances about the running of the club behind the scenes, he has been satisfied from early in the process that he could work within Chelsea’s sporting structure.
Stewart and Winstanley said in a statement: “Mauricio’s experience, standards of excellence, leadership qualities and character will serve Chelsea Football Club well as we move forward.
“He is a winning coach, who has worked at the highest levels, in multiple leagues and languages. His ethos, tactical approach and commitment to development all made him the exceptional candidate.”
The new boss, whose contract includes an option for a third season, will work closely with the co-sporting directors as the club look to rebuild after their worst season in 30 years.
Since Potter was removed and Lampard handed the reins, Chelsea have lost eight of their 11 games, winning only once.
They were knocked out of the Champions League by Real Madrid at the quarter-final stage, and a 12th-place finish – their lowest since 1996 – means they will not play in Europe next season.
Lampard said on Sunday that working with a bloated squad of 34 first-team players was the most challenging thing he faced at Stamford Bridge.
One of Pochettino’s first tasks will be deciding who of that number are part of his plans and who can leave, with the club under pressure to sell players in order to satisfy Financial Fair Play rules after spending around £600million on transfers in the last 12 months.
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