Champions League semis: defence defines Chelsea, Atletico, while Real continue Bundesliga swing

Ian Hawkey writes that goals will be precious when Chelsea and Atletico meet and Real need to overcome one last German hurdle if they want to reach the final.

A screen shows the results of the draw for the Champions League semi-final matches on Friday. Denis Balibouse / Reuters / April 11, 2014

Atletico Madrid v Chelsea, April 22

The best defence in this year’s European competitions takes on the most derided collection of strikers. Or at least, that’s how the Chelsea trio made up of Samuel Eto’o, Fernando Torres and Demba Ba must feel after having been collectively and in some cases individually criticised by their manager Jose Mourinho in recent weeks.

All three were together on the field as Chelsea chased qualification from their quarter-final against Paris Saint-Germain last Tuesday night, Ba eventually jabbing in the goal that saw Mourinho’s team through from a tie in which they gained their winning advantage only three minutes from the end.

These two have recent history. Atletico walloped Chelsea in the 2012 European Super Cup and, although in the past two decades the Londoners have accumulated far more experience at this stage of the Champions League than Atletico, the Spanish league-leaders do not play like novices.

Organised and well used to long Cup runs – they have won the Europa League twice in the past four seasons. Their concerns over the depth of their squad as they challenge for a prestigious double would seem greater than Chelsea’s. Yet they eliminated Barcelona in the previous phase with striker Diego Costa out injured for most of the tie and midfielder Arda Turan absent in the second leg.

Uefa yesterday confirmed that Thibaut Courtois, the Chelsea goalkeeper on loan at Atletico, could not be prevented from playing and that a reported clause in his agreement, stating the borrowing club must pay the lender several million euros if he plays against Chelsea, would be unenforceable in their competitions. It will still be two hard nights for the excellent Belgian.

Real Madrid v Bayern Munich, April 23

If Real Madrid are to win a long-awaited 10th European Cup, it will come to them via the autobahn. Schalke were overwhelmed in the last-16 stage, Borussia Dortmund toppled, by an uncomfortably fine margin, in the quarters and Madrid now meet the favourites, the holders and some familiar individual foes, in the semi-final.

Time was that anybody from Germany gave Madrid the jitters, and it is still an awkward fact their 6-1 victory at Schalke was only the second time in 26 competitive visits to a Bundesliga club that Madrid had won. When Dortmund hurried to a 2-0 lead last Tuesday, Real suffered, but held on for a 3-2 aggregate win on the back of their first, home-leg efforts.

Bayern knocked out Madrid two years ago in the semis, a scintillating tie eventually decided on penalties at the Bernabeu. Arjen Robben, a former Madrid player, played a key part, and again will relish showing his former club they may have been negligent in letting him go, albeit to accommodate Cristiano Ronaldo, the leading scorer this season in the Champions League.

The tie may well be won and lost on the flanks: Bayern’s Robben and Franck Ribery versus Ronaldo and Gareth Bale and, more significantly, examinations for the young full-backs David Alaba, of Bayern, and Dani Carvajal, of Madrid, while the German club’s coach Pepe Guardiola must decide whether to use captain Philipp Lahm in midfield or marking Ronaldo, while Carlo Ancelotti, Madrid’s coach, hopes left-back Marcelo’s recovery from injury – he’s due back next week – remains on schedule.