The Champions League rivalry between Real Madrid and Chelsea is of great interest, thanks in part to the numerous individual duels and clashes that initially carry an interesting history and internal tension. Carlo Ancelotti, who led Chelsea to Premier League titles in the past, became the first Real Madrid manager to beat the Blues in official matches. Ancelotti and Tuchel, who won the Champions League, by the way, are connected not only by Chelsea, but also by PSG, where both managed to work. Follow this link https://22bet.co.tz/mobile/ and always have an opportunity to bet on the most interesting games.
In the center of the field we can see the confrontation between partners in the Croatian national team – Modric and Kovacic, and Mateo, who started the match at Stafford Bridge, won the Champions League with both Real and Chelsea, and indeed the main club tournament of the Old World in recent years cannot be won without a Croatian in the squad. Rudiger, whose contract ends in London, has been matched to Real Madrid all season, and David Alaba could have moved to Chelsea last summer, not to Madrid.
There are even relatives in the teams: Chelsea goalkeeper Edouard Mendy and Real Madrid defender Ferland Mendy are cousins. However, Edouard should be compared to fellow former Chelsea goalkeeper Thibault Courtois, who is in great shape and dreams of his first Champions League win. The Belgian lost his first final in 2014 to Real Madrid, then he played for Atlético Madrid on loan from Chelsea.
If we talk about the first quarter-finals, then Courtois won the goalkeeper duel confidently. Thibault missed from Havertz, but made four saves, including a couple of advanced ones, while Mendy managed only two with the same five shots on target. And he became a co-author of an effective error, which led to the third goal of the incomparable Karim Benzema. The Frenchman’s opponent could have been Romelu Lukaku if the Chelsea forward had kept the form he showed in Italy. Alas, the Belgian after returning to Foggy Albion is not impressive, and even comparisons with one of the main contenders for the Golden Ball are completely inappropriate.
But Thibaut Courtois can and should be compared with successful colleagues in the shop. In 2022, Gianluigi Donnarumma (winning Euro 2022 with Italy) and Edouard Mendy (winning the 2020/21 Champions League with Chelsea) were at the top. The Senegalese at the beginning of this year celebrated the victory in the African Cup of Nations with the national team, but in the new Champions League competition Courtois for the title of the strongest goalkeeper on the planet so far eliminates Karim Benzema with his hat-tricks. Yes, and with the obvious mistakes of Gianluigi and Eduard. And all this against the backdrop of the excellent game of Thibaut himself, who, with his saves, saved the opportunity for a comeback in the confrontation with PSG and played famously at the familiar Stamford Bridge.
