When FIFA last year announced they were set to introduce limits on the number of players teams could send out on loan, unsurprisingly many people's first thoughts turned to Chelsea.

At the time, the Blues remarkably had 28 players at other clubs, though this was by no means a recent trend: in 2018-19 that figure was 41.

The 'hoarding' of talent might be a solid ploy when looking to stunt the growth of a rival team or generate long-term revenue on Football Manager, but in the real world it was a practice that had long attracted criticism.

While by no means the only club in the world to have lots of young players out on loan, Chelsea have – rightly or wrongly – arguably been the most synonymous with it.

Some feel this has directly contributed to the club's struggles in developing homegrown talent because they have so many players, whereas others believe it offers a greater number of individuals the chance to play first-team football at a higher level than the Under-23s.

Putting aside some of the moral issues, Mason Mount falls into the latter category and proves there is a route to the first team through the fog of war for Chelsea's loan army.

By his own admission Mount needed an extra kick when he was in Chelsea's Under-23s as an 18-year-old, and that led to his temporary switch to the Eredivisie with Vitesse Arnhem, where he won the club's Player of the Year award.

But it's unlikely even he realised how important his next move would be as he linked up with Chelsea great Frank Lampard.

In at the deep end

Mount made 44 appearances across all competitions for Derby County in 2018-19 as they missed out on promotion in the play-off final, but regardless of that ultimate disappointment it proved a massive year for both he and Lampard.

With Maurizio Sarri departing Stamford Bridge to join Juventus despite Europa League success, Lampard was brought back to the club as head coach. Given his status and the trust he placed in young players – and, more pertinently, young players owned by Chelsea – at Derby, Lampard was seen as the ideal candidate to guide the team through a transfer embargo by bringing through homegrown talent.

Whether or not Lampard was a success as Chelsea coach is a discussion for another time, but his faith in Mount was unquestionable, chucking him straight into the team on the first day of the 2019-20 season.

The Blues suffered a rather harsh 4-0 defeat at Manchester United, but Mount didn't look out of his depth in the Premier League, playing four key passes over the course of the match.

He never enjoyed a more productive Premier League game in terms of chances created in 2019-20, while he finished the season with 12 goal involvements (seven scored, five set up), a figure bettered by only Tammy Abraham (18), Willian (16) and Christian Pulisic (13) in the Chelsea squad.

Similarly, Willian (76) was the only Chelsea player to lay on more key passes over 2019-20 than Mount's 52 and he appeared in more league games than any of his team-mates (37).

But those points don't quite tell the whole story. To say he was consistent throughout the season would be a lie, as after the turn of the year there was a growing sense of frustration regarding his form. Between the start of November and the final day of the season, his three assists amounted to a couple of corner deliveries for Antonio Rudiger to head home, and a free-kick against Arsenal that Bernd Leno made a mess of. Mount's one open-play assist of 2019-20 came on the final day of the season against Wolves.

Some felt Mount was being over-worked by Lampard, others put his issues down to being used in a variety of roles – one week he'd occupy a central midfield position, the next he could be deployed as a winger and then he might play as a No.10.

The "teacher's pet" tag began to raise its head, with Lampard's almost incessant use of Mount leading to suggestions of preferential treatment. 

A star of his own merit

When Thomas Tuchel was hired as Lampard's replacement in January, there wouldn't have been too many particularly worried for Mount's future given he had been a fixture in the team.

But when Mount was dropped for the German's first game in charge, Tuchel's decision certainly made people sit up and take note.

While he explained it away as opting to go with experience, dropping Mount suggested for arguably the first time since his return from Derby that he had a fight on his hands.

But it would be fair to say he's risen to the challenge.

"I understood and wanted to get back into the team, so that motivation and that fire that I have inside me came out," Mount said at a news conference last month. "I really tried to push to get back into the team. It's been brilliant."

Since then, he's become more productive almost across the board in the final third under Tuchel than he had been for Lampard in 2020-21.

Seemingly one of the main contributing factors is his role. While Lampard used Mount in numerous positions, Tuchel has largely deployed him further up the pitch in an attempt to get him closer to the opposition's penalty area – activity maps show a significant change between the two coaches' usage of the 21-year-old.

Not only is he involved in passing moves more often as a result, he's contributing to sequences that end in a shot with greater frequency as well. His 72 (7.8 per 90 minutes) during Tuchel's 12 Premier League matches is the second highest in the division since the German's appointment, while his 96 (5.6 per 90 minutes) involvements in Lampard's 18 top-flight games this term was the eighth most.

The expected goals value from these sequences has increased too, going from 0.43 to 0.65 per 90 minutes, meaning Chelsea are creating greater quality chances with Mount further up the pitch.

Furthermore, there's been a considerable improvement in his own productivity. While his chance creation record in the past may have been skewed by set-pieces, he's moved up the rankings in terms of open-play key passes per 90 minutes. With 1.5 each game, only 12 others have done better than Mount since Tuchel's arrival – beforehand, his 1.2 per 90 minutes had him 43rd in those rankings.

While he may still be without a single open-play assist in 2020-21, it's clear to see that Mount's strong associative talents and ability to play tidily in busier areas of the pitch make him a real asset to Tuchel, who has acted quickly to shift the England international into a position that seemingly suits him better.

Scoring has been an issue for them, with the likes of Timo Werner and Kai Havertz continuing to struggle, and this has undoubtedly impacted Mount as his expected assists from open play is 3.5 - with more clinical finishing he wouldn't still be sat on zero.

Mount's form lately seems to suggest that once Chelsea begin to click in front of goal, he'll be key to much of their build-up.

A homegrown beacon of hope

Throughout Roman Abramovich's time as Chelsea owner, the club has often found itself in a sort of purgatory – while they've undoubtedly wanted success and a first-team full of homegrown talents, it's difficult to say they've truly struck a balance between the two.

After all, since the start of the century, Chelsea products reaching 100 Premier League appearances for the club have been a rarity.

John Terry, of course, leads the way, but beyond him it becomes a bit murky. John Obi Mikel and Nemanja Matic perhaps come closest to fitting the bill, though both did play senior football elsewhere before joining the club as teenagers.

Granted, Mount remains a little way off yet as well having played 67 times in the top-flight for Chelsea, but he's quickly making up ground.

Not too far behind him are Tammy Abraham (56), Callum Hudson-Odoi and Ruben Loftus-Cheek (both on 54), while Andreas Christensen – at Chelsea since 2013 – has featured 70 times.

What's in store for their long-term futures at Chelsea remains to be seen – they are far less certain than Mount.

But Mount especially shows that where there wasn't much hope for young talent coming through at Chelsea in the past, now there is for arguably the first time in the Abramovich era.

Chelsea head coach Thomas Tuchel said the Champions League is "anyone's competition" to win after his side reached the semi-finals with a 2-1 aggregate victory over Porto.

Porto won the second leg 1-0 on Tuesday but it was not enough to overturn Chelsea's 2-0 first-leg victory.

Chelsea will play either Liverpool or Real Madrid in the final final, while Paris Saint-Germain will meet either Manchester City or Borussia Dortmund.

As Chelsea prepare for their eighth Champions League semi-final – the most of any English club – Tuchel told reporters: "We're in the competition and in the semi-final it is anyone's competition.

"In the semi-final, you need players fit, momentum, luck in the games.

The German added: "It is a very big achievement. You see when Chelsea was last in the semi-final.

"We are not used to being there. Once you are there, you play for the final. This is clear."

Chelsea will be appearing in their first Champions League semi-final since 2013-14 with a younger brigade of players compared to their upcoming opponents.

"When you look on the scoresheet last week, you saw two players [Mason Mount and Ben Chilwell] who scored their first goals in the competition," Tuchel said.

"When you look at Kylian Mbappe, Neymar, [Karim] Benzema or [Mohamed] Salah score, it is their 50th or 100th goal or something. We arrived with a very young team.

"We want a young team to turn it around. What a young team can do it run, fight and hang in there. It is an adventure for them. It is a big step to be here."

Chelsea head coach Thomas Tuchel revelled in the club's Champions League semi-final berth after surviving a tense last-eight tie with Porto.

Porto claimed a last-gasp 1-0 win on Tuesday thanks to Mehdi Taremi's stunning acrobatic stoppage-time strike, but the Premier League side still advanced to the final four 2-1 on aggregate.

It was a tough battle at Estadio Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan – the same venue as last week's opening leg due to coronavirus protocols – with only three shots on target (one for Chelsea) throughout the return fixture.

But Chelsea saw off the Portuguese visitors over two legs to reach the semi-finals for the eighth time, more than any other English side in Champions League history.

"We accepted what was needed was a tough, tough fight," Tuchel told BT Sport as Chelsea prepare for their first semi-final appearance since 2013-14.

"Maybe on the television it was not so nice to watch but on the sidelines it was a very intense game, a very fast game.

"It was a tough fight and very hard to play against them to escape the pressure. They attack in a fluid and aggressive way. They change positions all the time. They come from behind, they overlap and you have to adapt to many movements. With every minute we did it better and better after a tough start.

"We defended well and deserved a clean sheet. We had the better chances - not a lot – but the better half chances. We could not finish it off with a goal so we had to hang in there and the guys did that.

"Overall we deserved to beat Porto. It was a tough 180 minutes."

It could be an all-English semi-final, with Chelsea set to face either Liverpool or Real Madrid in the final four.

LaLiga champions Madrid carry a 3-1 lead over Premier League holders Liverpool heading into Wednesday's second leg at Anfield.

Asked whether he would like to avoid Liverpool in the semi-finals, Tuchel added: "I like it in Champions League not to play in teams from your own league, it gives the feeling more of a European competition.

"The game is far from over and I will watch it for sure. It's a pleasure to watch it as a semi-finalist.

"It's a great achievement and tomorrow we will watch the game. Everything is possible. We will take what we get."

Thomas Tuchel insists he will not hide from the challenge of winning trophies at Chelsea as they prepare for a significant Champions League and FA Cup double bill.

The Blues face Porto on Tuesday in the home leg of their quarter-final tie in a commanding position, having won 2-0 in the first fixture.

On Saturday, they will meet quadruple-chasing Manchester City in an FA Cup semi-final, with the prospect of meeting either Leicester City or Southampton in the final.

Chelsea remain in a battle for a top-four finish in the Premier League but head coach Tuchel has his sights set on delivering silverware, despite only taking over from Frank Lampard in January.

Asked if the Champions League is Chelsea's best chance of a trophy in 2020-21, Tuchel replied: "Maybe when you are in the final.

"We are in the second leg of the quarter-final of the Champions League. You will not find any team who do not have the goal to reach the semi-final.

"We are in the semi-final of the FA Cup and have the chance to arrive in the final. If we arrive in the final then we have the chance to win.

"There is nothing to hide. This is a club that has a culture, a structure to win titles and win games consecutively. Chelsea is the club that has the culture and the history and mentality to do so.

"I am here to win titles, I am here to win games and as a result, win titles. This is what I demand of myself so why should we now say anything different?

"But, honestly, we can talk for hours and hours but tomorrow is the game to play and there is no tougher match than the next game, there is no tougher obstacle than the one in front of you and we should not get lost in dreams, hopes and speeches or whatever.

"We are here to perform in the second leg of the quarter-final, this is what we do and then hopefully after tomorrow we can talk about a semi-final."

Goals from Mason Mount and Ben Chilwell secured Chelsea's first-leg win and they are yet to lose a game in this season's competition.

Porto, meanwhile, have only won once in their past 20 knockout games as the away side, while only four teams have previously progressed in this competition after losing a home first leg of a tie without scoring.

Still, Tuchel believes Porto have an easier challenge as they can only go all out for victory in Seville, where the first leg was also held due to coronavirus restrictions.

"We don't approach games like this [passively] or change the approach," Tuchel said. "For us, it is important that we focus on us, play the best game possible as this increases the chances to have a result.

"In terms of a result, it is easier for Porto because they need to score three goals to get through, for them if it is clear. For us, if we start in this way then we could completely lose our heads. I hope we embrace the challenge and feel it."

Thomas Tuchel praised a "good step" taken by Kai Havertz and called on the Chelsea forward to continue to show his quality after his instrumental role in the 4-1 win at Crystal Palace.

Havertz has largely struggled since his close-season move from Bayer Leverkusen but opened the scoring at Selhurst Park, where Chelsea surged back into the top four.

He laid on the second goal for Christian Pulisic as Chelsea went two up inside 10 minutes, with Kurt Zouma's header and a late effort from Pulisic, sandwiched by a Christian Benteke consolation, giving the Blues a comfortable victory.

Havertz's goal was his first in the Premier League since October while this was his first game in the competition in which he has both found the net and provided an assist.

Chelsea have the second leg of their Champions League quarter-final tie with Porto, which they lead 2-0, on Tuesday before taking on Manchester City in the FA Cup semi-final next Saturday.

With so many significant fixtures on the horizon as they also fight for Champions League qualification next season, Tuchel wants more from Havertz.

The coach told a post-match media conference: "He has quality, he needs to show it. Easy as that.

"He will never be our emotional leader, we don't expect him to be. But we expect him to show his quality.

"Honestly, he needed to show he can do better. So many decisive matches coming, he got another chance to show he can do better than he did against Porto. A good step and a good performance."

Mason Mount was similarly impressive for Chelsea, playing four key passes and providing the assist for Zouma's fifth goal of the season.

The midfielder also completed 93.8 per cent of his passes in the opposition half and sent in a game-high 15 crosses.

Asked about Mount, Tuchel added: "Mason was focused, high energy level, strong performance.

"It's in our DNA that we have a high work rate, high intensity and are tired after a match. This is how it should be, we are Chelsea."

Thomas Tuchel says Chelsea retain "faith and trust" in struggling forwards Timo Werner and Kai Havertz.

Both players were substituted with 25 minutes left in the 2-0 Champions League win over Porto in Seville on Wednesday.

Tuchel said after the quarter-final first leg that the two players had not given him what he was looking for.

But ahead of the short trip to play Crystal Palace in the Premier League on Saturday, he insisted both players remain a key part of his plans and that his substitutions were specific only to that match.

Tuchel accepts Werner is lacking in confidence but does not have any concerns over Havertz.

Werner has been directly involved in more Premier League goals this season than any other Chelsea player (11, with five goals and six assists). 

However, the Germany striker has scored with just one of his last 42 shots in the competition, a strike against Newcastle United in February.

"Look at the games Porto played in the Champions League," said Tuchel in defence of Werner and Havertz.

"If you can show me any nice, fluid and pretty games of any opponent we can talk again. I did not find it. 

"They make your life very tough, especially for offensive players. They went through the group with 13 points. You can ask in the group how easy it was to play against them. 

"They did not have the easiest task up front. They had a big impact defensively and they worked hard for us, both Kai and Timo. 

"It was difficult for them to find spaces and create something, so we changed after 65 minutes but we will not lose faith and trust. 

"We accept sometimes it's hard sometimes to have a big impact. Maybe Timo misses a bit of confidence in his finishing but Kai, I feel, is very self-confident. 

"There are no bigger concerns. It was just in this game we tried to change the momentum."

Chelsea are yet to lose on the road under Tuchel in the Premier League (W3 D2).

The Palace clash comes after a dramatic week for the Blues, with the Porto win following up a shock 5-2 home reverse against West Brom.

Tuchel is keen to ensure his players do not get too up or down based on one result.

He added: "It's my job to learn every day and from every game, from every situation we have to face. 

"I don't have a big conclusion after the two games with the down and up we had in terms of results. 

"It's important to share experiences and make my experiences with the team. It's the first time we lost, a big loss, an unexpected loss in a weird game. 

"We have a lot of positives together so we needed to adapt and react to it. 

"I'm very happy we bounced back immediately. We were unlucky in some situations in the game. It's important for us now that we went through this. 

"Hopefully we can start a winning streak again."

Palace have kept five clean sheets in the Premier League at Selhurst Park since the turn of the year, two more than in the entirety of 2020.

But manager Roy Hodgson has lost six consecutive Premier League matches against Chelsea. 

The only opponent he has lost seven consecutive games against as a manager in the competition is Tottenham in a run that lasted between 2011 and 2019.

Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel acknowledges it is "a rough time" for out-of-favour striker Tammy Abraham.

Abraham's chances of being selected for England at Euro 2020 appear to be slipping away, but Tuchel insists he cannot pick players on that basis.

With Chelsea away to Crystal Palace in the Premier League on Saturday, the prospect of a recall to the starting XI for Abraham seems slim.

The former Aston Villa loanee has not played for Chelsea since February 20 and has been subbed off by half-time the last three times he started in the Premier League.

Ahead of the Palace clash, Tuchel was asked about whether Abraham's recent return from injury and his hopes of representing England at the Euros meant he would play more before the end of the season.

"I cannot do a decision on the personal goals of players," replied Tuchel. "I've got to do what I believe is best for Chelsea. 

"Kepa has the goal to play for Spain but this can't influence my decisions. 

"Tammy has had a rough time. He started twice or three times and substituted for tactical reasons at half-time. 

"He's not had the impact we wish and demand from him. 

"He then got injured, lost the connection and possibility to play for his place the squad. Now suddenly we are in the decisive part of the season, where it's not so easy to bring injured players into the shape. 

"We've only got three changes and a big handicap. It's up to Tammy to do everything possible. 

"We have 22 players on the pitch and it's very hard to select 18 for Premier League matches. 

"In the offensive position, it's possible to have a huge impact in small minutes. We demand a lot of Tammy, he demands a lot of himself."

Chelsea lost 5-2 to West Brom in their last league outing, a first defeat under Tuchel after the German had made a fantastic start to his reign.

They bounced back well with a 2-0 win over Porto in their Champions League quarter-final first leg and now look to continue a strong recent run against Palace.

Palace have lost their past six Premier League matches against Chelsea, their worst ever losing run against the Blues in league football.

Tuchel added: "Crystal Palace are a physical team with two key players up front that we need to take care of. 

"It's a pleasure to be on the sideline with Roy Hodgson on the other side. It means a lot to be there. 

"We'll do everything we can to beat them but we expect a tough away game.

"I met him once years ago. He is a gentleman and open to sharing his experience in coaching. His teams are calm, experienced and very, very solid." 

Chelsea have won 1.82 points per game in Premier League London derbies, the best ratio amongst sides from the capital. 

By contrast, only Fulham (0.81) have averaged fewer points per game in such matches than Palace (0.93).

None of the past 19 Premier League meetings between Palace and Chelsea have ended as a draw. 

Chelsea head coach Thomas Tuchel admitted Kai Havertz and Timo Werner were replaced following underwhelming performances in Wednesday's Champions League success against Porto.

Mason Mount and Ben Chilwell scored as Chelsea drew first blood against Portuguese outfit Porto in the quarter-final tie with a 2-0 victory in Seville midweek.

It was a necessary response for Tuchel, whose 10-man Chelsea were sensationally humbled 5-2 by lowly West Brom in the Premier League last time out.

But Chelsea did not have it all their own way against Porto, who were the better side for periods of the game and only just second best in terms of expected goals (xG) – 1.8 to 1.7 in the former's favour.

Havertz and Werner particularly struggled, the German duo replaced by Olivier Giroud and Christian Pulisic with 25 minutes remaining, and Tuchel explained his changes.

In his last 29 games in all competitions, Werner has missed 20 big chances, with an xG of 10.5 and 3.5 shot conversion rate.

"I accepted that it was a tough match for Timo and for Kai today," Tuchel told reporters after Chelsea won consecutive away knockout fixtures in the Champions League for the first time since 2004. "They did not have their best day but we did not deliver so well [for them].

"The connection between the deep seven players that we needed for the build-up and the front three, we lost a bit the connection to them.

"The balls we delivered were not the best balls and I could feel our two German players up front, Kai and Timo, did not play on their highest level today so I wanted to have an impact from the bench."

No side has conceded fewer goals (two) or kept more clean sheets (seven) in this season's Champions League than Chelsea (level with Manchester City on both counts).

Since Tuchel's first game in charge of Chelsea (January 27), no goalkeeper playing for a top-five European side has kept more clean sheets in all competitions than Edouard Mendy (10).

Tuchel added: "Christian has a good momentum, Oli has waited long and has good experience and memories of this stadium. We wanted to give the sign that we keep on going [in the game].

"This is the mentality in general that I like about this club and this team and that we want to implement. Once you lead, it is very hard to not play with the mentality of having something to lose. You want to keep what you have.

"But you need to go to try to win the next half and go and try to win the next duels and try to score the next goal. The best way to defend is to attack. The best way to impress the opponents is to have ball possession to be couraged and to always be a threat.

"I am happy about the impact of our substitutions. It is absolutely necessary that we have this bond between the players and we have this impact from the bench physically, but also with quality. That's why we are super happy with a big win today. The job is half done and we are aware of that and we need another top performance on Tuesday."

Thomas Tuchel feels Chelsea's response to their humiliating West Brom defeat by beating Porto 2-0 in the Champions League will increase the team's togetherness and trust.

Tuchel had overseen 14 games without defeat since replacing Frank Lampard in January until Saturday, but his unbeaten run as Blues head coach came to a stunning end at Stamford Bridge.

The fit-again Thiago Silva was sent off only 29 minutes into his first game for two months and second-bottom West Brom capitalised in ruthless fashion after Christian Pulisic opened the scoring in a match that ultimately finished 5-2 to Sam Allardyce's men.

It was only the second time in Premier League history that Chelsea had conceded five times at home, and to make matters worse, Kepa Arrizabalaga and Antonio Rudiger were involved in a training ground bust-up in the wake of that defeat.

But on Wednesday in Seville, where both legs of their quarter-final will be played due to coronavirus travel restrictions, Chelsea were clinical.

Mason Mount's first-half opener was added to late on by Ben Chilwell, who pounced on a defensive error, giving the Blues two away goals and putting them in complete control of the tie, much to the satisfaction of Tuchel after a difficult few days.

When asked if he had been confident of a good response to the Baggies defeat, Tuchel told BT Sport: "I was pretty sure about that because I saw a response immediately after the game in the dressing room and the next day, on Monday. I was pretty sure, it wasn't a big concern.

"We had a big loss of course, but it was our responsibility, we accepted it, me included, for all of us we were ready to respond.

"There will always be setbacks in sports. The biggest challenge is to bounce back.

"We had a lot of wins together, a lot of excellent results together, then we had a loss together and now we have a reaction after a loss together.

"That brings us closer together and increases the trust, and it was important for the guys to have straight after this defeat a clean sheet. It was excellent."

Chelsea have become accustomed to clean sheets this term, with Wednesday's shutout their seventh in the Champions League this term, taking them level with Manchester City as leaders in this regard.

It was also Edouard Mendy's 10th clean sheet across all competitions since Tuchel was appointed in January, more than any other goalkeeper in Europe's top five leagues.

But the scoreline did not give a true reflection of the game, with Porto the better side for periods of the game and only just second best in terms of expected goals (xG) – 1.8 to 1.7 in Chelsea's favour.

The second leg will take place on April 13, also at Sevilla's Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan, with Chelsea set to be the home side on that occasion.

Bayern Munich host Paris Saint-Germain in a repeat of last season's final and Porto meet Chelsea at a neutral venue in Wednesday's Champions League quarter-final first legs.

Bavarian giants Bayern beat PSG 1-0 to win the trophy last year and have remained unbeaten throughout this season's campaign.

But the reigning European champions are without injured star man Robert Lewandowski and do not have the best of records in this fixture.

Porto will be looking to build on their impressive win over Juventus in the last round when they take on Chelsea in what will be classed at their home leg at Sevilla's Estadio Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan.

The Portuguese side famously lifted the trophy in the 2003-04 season under Jose Mourinho, who was Chelsea boss the last time they reached this stage of the competition seven years ago.

Bayern Munich v Paris Saint-Germain: Can PSG exact some revenge against Lewandowski-less holders?

Not since March 2019, when going down 3-1 to Liverpool at the last-16 stage, have Bayern tasted defeat in Europe's premier club competition.

That is a run spanning 19 games and they could become the second team ever in the competition to go 20 without losing after Manchester United (25 between 2007 and 2009).

The Bavarians have won all but one of those matches, including a victory in last August's final, but they have a negative overall record against Wednesday's opponents.

PSG have won five and lost four of the previous 10 Champions League encounters, though this will be just their second meeting in the knockout phase.

Indeed, Bayern have only lost more Champions League matches against Real Madrid (10) than PSG, while against no side have the Ligue 1 club won more games in the competition.

Bayern will also be without Lewandowski, who has 15 goals in 13 Champions League games since Hansi Flick took over in November 2019 - the most of any player in the competition across that timeframe.

PSG will have their key men available, with Kylian Mbappe looking to build on a return of 35 goal involvements in 33 games for the club in the Champions League.

The France international has scored six goals in seven games in this season's competition, including four goals across the two legs with Barcelona last time out, making this his joint-best campaign alongside 2016-17.

Porto v Chelsea: Conceicao's charges hoping to jump quarter-final hurdle

This will be the eighth meeting between Porto and Chelsea in the Champions League, the Blues winning five and losing just one of those previous encounters.

Only against Madrid (six) have Porto lost more matches, and they were eliminated 3-2 by Chelsea the only previous time they met in the knockout stages in the 2006-07 last 16.

That was a familiar story, Chelsea having won 75 per cent of their Champions League games against Portuguese sides - only versus Spanish teams (13) have they won more, a record they added to with victories over Atletico Madrid in the last 16.

Should they overcome Porto here, Thomas Tuchel - appointed as Frank Lampard's successor in January - will become just the second Chelsea boss to win his first three Champions League knockout-stage matches after Roberto Di Matteo in 2011-12.

Porto are certainly no strangers to the last eight, reaching this stage for the third time since going all the way in 2003-04, but they have won only one of those six ties.

At 38 years and 40 days, it could be an occasion to remember for veteran defender Pepe, who is in line to become the oldest outfield player to feature in a Champions League quarter-final since Manchester United's Ryan Giggs (40y, 123d) in April 2014.

Sergio Conceicao fears Chelsea's shock loss to West Brom could work against Porto heading into the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final tie.

Chelsea had not lost under Thomas Tuchel before a stunning 5-2 home reverse on Saturday, a result that led to the Blues dropping out of the Premier League's top four.

Defender Thiago Silva was sent off shortly after his side had taken the lead against relegation-threatened opponents, with his dismissal leading to a dramatic collapse that Tuchel admitted in the aftermath was "tough to digest".

Porto, therefore, are wary of a possible backlash from that result in Seville, the venue for both games between the teams due to the travel restrictions in place during the coronavirus pandemic.

"You know that Thiago Silva was sent off in the first half and that the game had a different course," said Conceicao, whose side will be listed as the home team on Wednesday.

"Chelsea until this last game had been extremely competent, they have not lost a game in the Champions League. They are a competent team, and when these defeats happen, it serves as a warning.

"If you want my opinion, I would prefer that they won the last game. These situations make the siren sound and make everyone more alert, more awake to danger, and I honestly don't like these defeats very much."

Rather than read too much into the West Brom game, Conceicao highlighted how Chelsea had impressively overcome Atletico Madrid in the last 16, winning both legs without conceding a goal.

He also referenced his opposite number's penchant for tinkering with tactics to suit each match situation, something he says Tuchel also did during his time in charge at Paris Saint-Germain.

"In the analysis of Chelsea, practically that last game wasn't considered," the former Portugal international said.

"There were other games that they played before that, namely those in the Champions League against Atletico Madrid, but this one [against West Brom] did not enter [our analysis].

"Tuchel is a coach who is capable of changing even if he wins, while in France he did the same at PSG. Play with two men behind the striker or play with two men in front, as in the first round with Atletico. It is up to us to analyse that dynamic.

"I saw the last game they played, but we did not present images to the players of that game."

Porto made it through to the last eight at the expense of Juventus, but veteran centre-back Pepe made clear the players will not dwell on their Turin heroics and instead focus on the task in hand - getting past Chelsea.

"The Juventus match is already in the past. This is the important one now. We must show a lot of passion and humility and work as a team," said the defender, a three-time Champions League winner during his time at Real Madrid.

"We have prepared well. Nothing is certain in football, but I hope we will be the team that our fans expect. We respect Chelsea. It will be difficult, but we want to win this tie."

Thomas Tuchel confirmed Antonio Rudiger and Kepa Arrizabalaga were involved in an altercation in the wake of Saturday's shocking 5-2 defeat to West Brom, a game that Chelsea's head coach still cannot get his head around.

Chelsea found themselves on the end of a humiliating loss to the Premier League's second-bottom team, conceding five goals in a home league game for the first time since October 2011.

Similarly, West Brom netted five times on the road for the first time in over nine years.

Thiago Silva's sending off when Chelsea were 1-0 up was deemed to be the turning point, with Matheus Pereira netting a brace just prior the break, before Callum Robinson repeated that feat in the second period. Mbaye Diagne got the other Baggies goal, with Mason Mount's strike a mere consolation.

If the defeat was not bad enough, reports emerged the next day claiming Rudiger and Kepa had been involved in a bust-up at training.

While Chelsea did not comment on the matter publicly, Tuchel was open about the situation in Tuesday's news conference as he addressed the media ahead of the club's Champions League quarter-final first leg against Porto.

"It was not [serious]. It was an incident in training and got heated between Toni and Kepa," Tuchel said. "We calmed the situation down immediately. I don't want to play things down artificially, we do not want to accept [such incidents] but they can happen because everyone is competitive in training matches.

"The reaction to it, Toni and Kepa, was amazing. They showed how much respect they have for each other. They cleared the air and there was nothing left one day after.

"We spoke about the issue and then it was solved. This is the main part. It will stay with us, it wasn't awkward. They solved it straight after training in an honest and humble way and it showed me they have good character."

But although he initially played down the incident, Tuchel backtracked and emphasised the gravity of what occurred.

"It was serious," he continued. "Sometimes you have little situations when you look away and let them sort things out. We needed to interfere in this situation, so it was serious. How the guys handled the situation was impressive and showed character, but the situation was serious.

"That it got out [leaked]...I get used to it in modern times. There are too many channels and ways that information can get out. I heard even that some of my debrief from the match got out there too. Ok, it's not nice but I am not going to focus on who is the leak or whatever. I don't want to lose my trust in the group so I will accept it."

Regarding a punishment, Tuchel confirmed Rudiger will play on Wednesday and added: "No, no punishment so far because of the way they dealt with it. The reaction was immediate, they made it clear for everybody what happened. Toni sorted out it directly, which was necessary. It was a strong and brave thing to do and the right thing to do."

Tuchel quickly used the scrap to turn attention back to Chelsea's misfortune against West Brom, adamant that the statistics of the game suggested they ordinarily would have won.

"It's very natural there is a reaction to a result and game like this, so it is necessary to adapt," the German said. "It is a strong part of sports at this level that the guys hate to lose. So, if we suffer a big loss in a weird game, it's normal there are reactions.

"You have to swallow it and accept we lost the game. Then it's important that we are reliable in analysing the game. We can't only do meetings depending on the result. We can be critical after wins and we can point out things we like even though we lost 5-2.

"Part of this game's story is we won all the statistics against West Brom, all of them, with 10 men and 11 men, all statistics that matter to win games. Even expected goals [xG], we won the bypassed defenders, we won touches in the box, we won shots on targets – we won everything.

"If we played the same game again, I would bet a lot of money that we win 99 times out of 100."

And Tuchel has a point – in terms of xG, Chelsea edged West Brom 2.1 to 1.6, meaning the visitors were incredibly clinical with their chance-taking.

Nevertheless, West Brom's xG value was comfortably the highest registered by any team against Chelsea since Tuchel was appointed in January.

With a man advantage, West Brom certainly capitalised on the extra time and space in the final third.

Stunned Thomas Tuchel delayed a dressing-room debrief until Sunday after Chelsea deteriorated from a well-oiled machine to a "rusty" heap in a 5-2 thumping by West Brom.

The head coach had led Chelsea on a 14-game unbeaten run after succeeding Frank Lampard in January, but they were overrun at Stamford Bridge by Sam Allardyce's relegation battlers.

Christian Pulisic had given a slow-starting Chelsea the lead after 27 minutes, but a red card for Thiago Silva moments later led to the hosts going limp, and by the time their second goal arrived from Mason Mount, the Blues had conceded four times.

Matheus Pereira and substitute Callum Robinson both scored twice in the unexpected rout, with Mbaye Diagne also netting for the second-bottom Baggies. Robinson became the first player in Premier League history to score at least twice in home and away games against Chelsea in a single season.

Chelsea have a Champions League quarter-final first leg against Porto coming up in Seville on Wednesday, and Tuchel is determined for any personal response to his first defeat to be a measured one.

"We cannot lose our heads and we cannot take away the trust we have with these players," Tuchel said.

"It was the moment after the game to be honest but to be calm, and to breathe and tell everyone to breathe. It will be a hard afternoon and evening for everyone.

"We have to accept it now. It's our first loss together and it's important to find a way to deal with it together. There were some quick words to calm everyone down and delay the talks until tomorrow. Because now is too emotional, now is too much frustration, and this is not productive enough."

Tuchel felt Chelsea were off their game even from an early stage, complaining they missed "a lot of opportunities to finish this game" before West Brom began their hot streak.

They had 18 shots to West Brom's 14, but Chelsea would have been flattered by anything but defeat.

"We were not able to adapt to one man down," Tuchel said. "There is no need to concede five goals if you are one man down, with our quality.

"But our defending was clearly not on the level it used to be. It's hard to accept but there's no other solution than to accept it and move on forward."

As Allardyce savoured becoming the first manager to win away at Stamford Bridge in the Premier League with three different clubs (Bolton Wanderers, Crystal Palace and West Brom), Tuchel was left to consider what went so badly wrong.

The German coach was asked whether the result was a "wake-up call", but he suggested he had not considered his team in need of such a jolt.

"If we look at this game in four weeks hopefully we call it a wake-up call because that would mean we really woke up and started a new series [of unbeaten games]," he said.

"For me, it was not necessary. I did not feel an overconfidence, I didn't feel we were arrogant or without the effort. They started to defend very deep. We had high ball possession, we created good moments and had good ball recoveries up the pitch. But still at 11 against 11, we had crucial ball losses in our own half, which produced two set-pieces right around the box.

"I was a bit more concerned by our body positioning, our positioning for the build-up and everything seemed a bit rusty and more rusty than in training.

"And that's why I was surprised [by the early stages of the game]. But I could accept it, I did not have the highest expectations. I thought if it takes us a while to come into this match, I will accept it.

"But to give a red card away like this straight after a goal, maybe we did not feel the risk. I will talk to the players about it. But the attitude in defending was clearly not the same like we did before."

Even taking into account this rather unusual Premier League season, West Brom were not expected to get anything from their trip to Chelsea.

Beyond just their respective positions at opposites ends of the table, the visitors went into the fixture having managed just one away win all season in the league.

Stamford Bridge had certainly not been a happy hunting ground either – the Baggies had not triumphed there since September 1978 prior to Saturday's trip. They went on to finish third that season, as well as reaching the last eight of the UEFA Cup. Now, they just hope to stay in the top flight.

Chelsea, meanwhile, were unbeaten under Thomas Tuchel. Not only that, they had not conceded in their five Premier League home games since the German was appointed as Frank Lampard's replacement. The issues of inconsistency under the previous regime appeared to have been fixed.

The form guide pointed to only one outcome, yet the early kick-off produced a stunning scoreline: Chelsea 2 West Brom 5 (FIVE).

Here's to you, Mr Robinson

There was little sign of what was to come when Christian Pulisic put the Blues in front with his first league goal in the calendar year. However, less than two minutes later and the home team were down to 10, Thiago Silva becoming the oldest player to be sent off for Chelsea in the competition at 36 years and 193 days, the Brazilian shown a second yellow card for a foul on Okay Yokuslu.

Matheus Pereira scored twice in first-half stoppage time to turn the game around and put West Brom in front at the break. Sam Johnstone was the unlikely provider for one of them, in the process becoming the first West Brom goalkeeper to assist a Premier League goal.

There was to be no turnaround after the teams had turned around, either. Callum Robinson helped himself to a brace, making him the first player in Premier League history to score at least twice in home and away games against Chelsea in the same season - he had also struck twice when the sides drew 3-3 at the Hawthorns back in September.

All of the forward's top-flight goals have come against Chelsea, having also managed to score against the Blues last term when playing for Sheffield United.

A Mbaye Diagne effort was sandwiched in between Robinson's impressive double, meaning West Brom hit five away from home for the first time since February 2012. They remain deep in relegation trouble, of course, but the suddenly bouncing Baggies will hope they can use this result as a springboard for the most unlikely of escape acts.

Tuchel left stunned as Big Sam does it again

A day after being named Premier League Manager of the Month for March, Tuchel saw his unbeaten record come to an unexpected end. He had been unbeaten in 10 league games at the start of his reign, while Chelsea had won their previous 11 fixtures when hosting opponents sitting inside the relegation zone, doing so by an aggregate score of 31-4.

West Brom did not appear to be a difficult hurdle to clear, but the challenge became much tougher once Silva - making just his second appearance since February 4 - was dismissed.

Tuchel watched on as the Blues shipped five goals for just the second time at home in the Premier League era. The other visiting team to achieve the feat were Arsenal, when Robin van Persie's hat-trick helped the Gunners run out 5-3 winners against a Chelsea line-up that included club legends John Terry, Petr Cech and Lampard, while a young Romelu Lukaku made an appearance off the bench.

"I did not see that second half coming," Tuchel said afterwards, seemingly speaking on behalf of everyone who had sat through proceedings. In a case of stating the obvious, he also admitted his team "didn't defend well".

Something about West Brom seems to trouble Chelsea, though. They have conceded eight goals in the two meetings in 2020-21, the most they have shipped against one side in a single campaign in the competition, in collecting a solitary point.

As for Tuchel's opposite number, Sam Allardyce becomes the first visiting manager to win at Chelsea with three different clubs in the Premier League, having previously done so while in charge at Bolton Wanderers and Crystal Palace.

What made the result even more astonishing is West Brom had scored just 10 goals in 16 league games under the former England boss beforehand, averaging out at 0.6 per game, and had drawn a blank in their three outings prior to the international break in March. 

A shellshocked Thomas Tuchel said Chelsea's Premier League 5-2 thrashing at the hands of relegation-threatened West Brom was "tough to digest".

Tuchel had overseen 14 games without defeat since replacing Frank Lampard in January, but his unbeaten run as Blues head coach came to a stunning end at Stamford Bridge on Saturday.

The fit-again Thiago Silva was sent off only 29 minutes into his first game for two months and second-bottom Albion capitalised in ruthless fashion after Christian Pulisic opened the scoring.

Matheus Pereira struck twice in first-half stoppage time and substitute Callum Robinson grabbed a second-half double, with Mbaye Diagne also on target for the Baggies.

Mason Mount had made it 4-2, but sorry Chelsea were unable to contend with Sam Allardyce's clinical side as they suffered a sensational setback in their bid to secure a top-four finish.

Chelsea had gone seven games without conceding a goal before facing Sam Allardyce's side and Tuchel was at a loss to explain the manner in which West Brom coasted to a first league win at Stamford Bridge since 1978.

The German told BBC Sport: "It is two games, 11 v 11 and then 11 v 10. There is no need to concede five goals when you have our quality, that's for sure but we are all in on that. Myself included.

"We could not adapt to the situation, which is a surprise as we were leading. We are normally confident enough to defend but we were sloppy and kept making big mistakes. We were punished hard and it's tough to digest.

"I didn't see the red card, I saw the two big mistakes in our own half before the yellow cards. That is not typical for us, we were rusty. We made easy mistakes and were punished. It was totally our fault.

"I did not see that second half coming. We tried to give a bit of security with a back three but we were never in a flow. We had some chances but we didn't defend well."

Victory for Albion ensured Allardyce became the first manager in Premier League history to win at Chelsea with three different clubs in the competition, also winning there with Bolton Wanderers and Crystal Palace.