Real Madrid vs Chelsea Champions League preview: where to watch, line-ups, team news

Real Madrid host Chelsea in the UEFA Champions League semi-final first leg on Tuesday 27 April at 21:00 CET.

What's the story?

In their first semi-final since 2018 – when they went on to lift the trophy – Madrid take on a Blues side eyeing their first showpiece since 2012; for Thomas Tuchel, it would be a second final – with two different clubs – in barely nine months.

Where to watch the game on TV

Fans can find their local UEFA Champions League broadcast partner(s) here.

Form guide

Real Madrid
Form: DWDDWW
Latest: Real Madrid 0-0 Real Betis, 24/04
Where they stand: 2nd in Liga

Chelsea
Form: WDWLWW
Latest: West Ham 0-1 Chelsea, 24/04
Where they stand: 4th in Premier League, FA Cup final

Starting line-ups

Real Madrid: Courtois; Militão, Varane, Nacho; Carvajal, Modrić, Casemiro, Kroos, Marcelo; Benzema, Vinícius Jr

Chelsea: Mendy; Christensen, Thiago Silva, Rüdiger; Azpilicueta, Kanté, Jorginho, Chilwell; Pulišić, Werner, Mount

Expert predictions

Joe Walker, Real Madrid reporter: Madrid once again find themselves in the semi-finals despite not having been at their best for large parts of the season. While they are still missing a number of key men, the return of Eden Hazard could not be more timely and he will no doubt have a point to prove against his former employers. Madrid have also looked watertight at the back despite the absence of Sergio Ramos. I think the idea will be to try and get the job done in the Spanish capital before the trip to London next week.

Jon Phipps, Chelsea reporter: It’s still just two defeats for Thomas Tuchel, including the second leg against Porto, and after three clean sheets on the spin, confidence is high in the Chelsea camp. At the same time, the Blues have only scored three in their last four outings, so a seven-goal thriller looks unlikely – the aim is to bring something back to London.

View from the camps

Zinédine Zidane, Real Madrid head coach: "Chelsea are a side who've done their work in the Champions League and deserve to be in the semis, just as Real Madrid do. It's going to be a tough, different game, and Chelsea are side with plenty of experience at this level, too. We've got a month of the season to go and we'll fight until the end, come what may. We'll have difficulties, of course, but so will all teams. What motivates us is to go out onto the pitch and give everything we can."

Thomas Tuchel, Chelsea manager: "We should not expect crazy things from us, but the same again on the highest level. We have had tough matches, important matches, so we feel it is a good moment to play this match. We want to play hungry. [We must] be ourselves: that is the strategy. Rely on yourself, your strengths and do the things that make you confident. Hopefully, we don't overthink and overdo it.”