Thomas Tuchel warns Chelsea to be wary of Real Madrid's big-game experience

Ahead of their Champion League quarter-final first leg, Blues manager says Spanish side have proven record of 'producing special performances' when it counts

Real Madrid's Karim Benzema celebrates after scoring in the 3-1 comeback win over of PSG in the Champions League last-16 second leg on March 9, 2022. EPA

Marco Verratti, Lionel Messi and Neymar of Paris Saint-Germain look dejected as they exit the Champions League. Getty

Real Madrid's Karim Benzema celebrates scoring his third goal to secure an incredible 3-1 win against PSG in the Champions League last 16. Reuters

Paris St Germain's Kylian Mbappe celebrates scoring their first goal against Real Madrid. Reuters

Mbappe celebrates scoring with Lionel Messi. Reuters

Kylian Mbappe celebrates scoring the first goal. Reuters

Lionel Messi looks amused. Getty

Real Dani Carvajal in action against Kylian Mbappe. EPA

Lionel Messi is tackled by Luka Modric. Getty

Real Madrid's Fede Valverde in action against Neymar. EPA

Neymar battles for possession with Toni Kroos and Federico Valverde. Getty

Neymar reacts during the match. Getty

Dutch referee Danny Makkelie talks to Argentinian forward Lionel Messi. AFP

Messi tackles Real Madrid's Toni Kroos. AP

Real's Karim Benzema levels the scores. Reuters

Real Madrid's Karim Benzema celebrates after scoring the equaliser. EPA

Karim Benzema celebrates after scoring his and Real's second goal. Getty

Benzema after his hat-trick. Reuters

Thomas Tuchel has warned that Chelsea have to be wary of Real Madrid’s ability to rouse themselves and produce special performances when it matters most.

Chelsea are the reigning Champions League winners after eliminating Real in the semi-finals last year but while the Spanish league leaders are the competition’s most successful club, lifting the European Cup a record 13 times, the German has paid most attention to their recent record.

Tuchel’s team are bidding to become just the second team to retain the Champions League in the last three decades after Real, who won it in 2016, 2017 and 2018.

While some pillars of that team, including Cristiano Ronaldo and Sergio Ramos, are long gone, others remain, such as Karim Benzema, Luka Modric, Toni Kroos and Casemiro. Tuchel believes that big-game experience matters more than their defeat to Chelsea in 2021.

“I think this has nothing to do with last season's game,” he said. “They won it three times [in a row] and this competition is unbelievably hard to win. They trusted a similar squad in a long period of time which is impressive.

“It is normal that cycles like this change at times in terms of a winning streak but we should be very aware that teams with this kind of experience, flair and quality can produce special performances and special occasions.”

Real Madrid’s former Chelsea manager Carlo Ancelotti may miss the game after testing positive for coronavirus and Tuchel said: “I'm pretty sure he can do the team talk and be in charge of players. But it's always nicer to be there and have direct influence. I personally hope he makes it.”

Chelsea had been in fine form until suffering a shock 4-1 defeat to their neighbours Brentford on Saturday but winger Christian Pulisic, who scored against Real in the semi-final last year, thinks that could galvanise them.

“The game at the weekend was a tough one but maybe it was the kick we needed,” he said. “I think the guys are going to turn it around. It was a crazy result and it is not the time to panic.

Chelsea 1 Brentford 4: player ratings

CHELSEA RATINGS: Edouard Mendy – 4 The Senegalese goalkeeper had a moment to forget when he gave the ball away to Toney, who’s looped effort couldn't find the target. Not a good day at the office. EPA

Cesar Azpilicueta – 4 The Chelsea captain looked shaky at best and overwhelmed when Brentford were piling on the pressure on the wing, with Janelt left free twice. Getty

Antonio Rudiger – 5 Chelsea’s star player will be rewatching his strike to put the Blues ahead but will not want to see Brentford’s goals, with the German another victim of Janelt’s run for his second. Reuters

Thiago Silva – 4 Caught out of position, the veteran defender left Chelsea’s defence exposed and Janelt free on goal. Getty

Marcos Alonso – 4 Sacrificed after Brentford’s equaliser, Alonso did not look at his best, with his passes largely hopeful and unable to deal with the threat on the wing, narrowing too much to contend with Mbeumo’s pace and leaving Eriksen free to shoot. AFP

Ruben Loftus-Cheek – 4 Awarded his first Premier League start since November, Loftus-Cheek provided Chelsea with their first shot on target when he was able to weave between Brentford players. EPA

N’Golo Kante – 5 In a struggling Chelsea side, the Frenchman tried to make something happen with his passes and runs, before his bouncing effort was an easy claim for Raya. Should have been positioned better for Janelt’s second as he failed to track his run. PA

Mason Mount – 5 The England international was unable to connect with Alonso’s pass, with his effort flying high and wide of Raya’s goal. AFP

Hakim Ziyech – 5 The Moroccan surely should have had his ninth of the season when he forced Raya to tip his effort over the bar. Despite having the pace to keep with Mbeumo’s attack, Ziyech looked surprised when Eriksen was free to shoot. AFP

Kai Havertz – 5 The German forward led the line and when his side was struggling to stitch things together, he tried to help his defenders. Found the net, but it was ruled disallowed for handball. Played through on goal with a delightful pass by Kovacic, but his effort was wide of the far post. PA

Timo Werner – 3 After a quiet first half and failing to make anything happen, Werner was played through by Havertz in the second half and saw his shot saved by Raya. PA

SUBS: Reece James (Alonso 55’) – 5 An early change as Brentford turned things around in a matter of minutes at Stamford Bridge. Getty

Mateo Kovacic (Werner 64’) – 5 The Croatian played an excellent pass with one of his first touches to squeeze Havertz through on goal, although the German’s effort went wide. Fired over the bar from distance. EPA

Romelu Lukaku (Kante 65’) – 4 Started from the bench again and failed to really get anything going when he came on as Chelsea fell apart. AP

BRENTFORD RATINGS: David Raya – 6 In the week of his debut for his country, the Spaniard was largely untroubled in a slow start from Chelsea but he was alert to tip over Ziyech’s powerful goal bound effort. No chance saving Rudiger’s strike. AP

Kristoffer Ajer – 7 The Norwegian started in a back three and was handy in giving his goalkeeper cover in the second half, providing a crucial block to deny Werner before Brentford took the lead. AP

Pontus Jansson – 7 The Bees captain came close to getting on the end of a free-kick, but Havertz was able to get enough of a deflection to deny him. Reuters

Ethan Pinnock – 7 The Brentford centre-back looked capable against Chelsea’s frontline and intercepted well. EFP

Rico Henry – 7 Commendable effort in keeping Mount and Ziyech quiet down his wing. EPA

Mads Roerslev – 6 Got on quietly with his task and was not a weak link. Getty

Vitaly Janelt – 8 The 23-year-old found the net to put the Bees level just minutes after Rudiger’s goal. Beat the offside trap and caught out every Chelsea player to squeeze through and loop over Mendy to score his second of the game. AFP

Christian Norgaard – 7 Playing alongside his compatriot in Eriksen, the Danish midfielder was everything Thomas Frank would have wanted, always there to clear the ball and ease Brentford out of danger. PA

Christian Eriksen – 8 After a successful spell with his national side, the Dane was unable to trouble Mendy with an early free-kick but proved to be the quality and experience Brentford needed, and matched Mbeumo’s pace to score his first goal for the club. AP

Bryan Mbuemo – 8 The pacey frontman slotted in Janelt to score the leveller. Mbeumo then did incredibly well to leave Chelsea in tatters when he went on the break with Eriksen before providing his second assist of the game. Getty

Ivan Toney – 7 After squandering a looping shot, he found the side-netting in the opening minutes, before guiding a header over the bar. Vital in Janelt’s second, timing his header to perfection and playing his team-mate in on goal. AFP

SUBS: Mathias Jensen (Janelt 81’) – N/R With Brentford 3-1 ahead by the time of his arrival, Jensen had a straightforward task. EPA

Yoane Wissa (Mbeumo 86’) – N/R The Bees substite wasted no time joining in the fun when he volleyed home a loose ball in the box. AFP

Sergi Canos (Henry 88’) – N/R A late change for the Bees. EPA

“We got good results against them [Real] last year and hope to do so this year. Knowing we have done it last year, we should feel confident and that is our mindset.”

Pulisic praised his teammates for the way they have coped with the uncertainty surrounding Chelsea’s future, with the club up for sale after owner Roman Abramovich was sanctioned by the British government for his links to Vladimir Putin.

“I think the guys have done really well to deal with it,” he said. “You can see when everything was going on, the way the guys reacted and continued to get result after result.”

While Pulisic stressed he is happy at Stamford Bridge, defender Andreas Christensen, who is out of contract in the summer, has reportedly agreed to join Barcelona.

Tuchel, who said the Dane was omitted against Brentford because of a tactical decision to play with a back four, told him he should stay and ought to be grateful to Chelsea for their role in his development.

“He is in exactly the right place and he should continue his journey at this club to become the defender he can be and the personality and figure he wants to be,” he added. “In my opinion he should not forget where he gave from and he who gave him his education.

Tuchel could recall Christensen, explaining: “It is very clear when I had conversations with him, the bottom line is as long as you are my player I expect him to be 100 per cent committed and nothing less. It is what we expect and what we have experienced.”

Real Madrid 3 PSG 1: player ratings

REAL MADRID: Thibaut Courtois - 6: Made three comfortable first-half saves but was then deceived at near post by Mbappe for opening goal of game. EPA

Dani Carvajal - 5: Playing like a winger on right dragged powerful strike wide of target in 12th minute. Costly loss of possession led to counter-attack and Mbappe’s goal. Cynical booking for barging over same player in second half. EPA

Eder Militao - 7: Two vital challenges on Messi and then Neymar when former Barca pair were teeing-up shots just before break. Dominant and error-free at back for Real, unlike some PSG defenders at other end. EPA

David Alaba - 7: Former Bayern Munich defender was last man when Mbappe charged through in first half but couldn’t stop French striker scoring. Perfectly timed tackle to stop Mbappe scoring another early in second period. AFP

Nacho - 6: Picked up yellow for tripping Hakimi late in first half and found Moroccan’s pace a problem for first hour of game until Real’s first goal when balance of game turned on its head and Nacho played his part. AFP

Luka Modric - 8: Croatian midfielder had not been at his most influential then took charge of game on second half. Charging run to begin move for Benzema’s second and then provided pinpoint pass to striker’s feet to seal assist. Curled left-foot shot just wide in last couple of minutes. AP

Federico Valverde - 7: Picked out Benzema with cross in first half but attacker’s header sailed gently into Donnarumma’s hands. Another midfielder who helped Real turnaround game. EPA

Toni Kroos – 6: Recovered from hamstring injury to start in midfield and his perfect ball into middle picked out Benzema for French striker’s second missed headed opportunity. German didn’t look 100 per cent fit and came off before hour mark. AP

Marco Asensio - 4: Couldn’t get into game and when half-chance did fall his way just after half-time, his control let him down and PSG cleared. Hooked early in second half. AFP

Karim Benzema – 9.5: Thought he had opened scoring with curling shot but Donnarumma tipped narrowly wide of upright. Levelled scores on night after taking advantage of Donnarumma error. Then scored two goals in less than a minute to seal his second-half hat-trick. AFP

Vinicius Junior - 8: Pace caused PSG early problems and looked like he might run riot but threat waned as first-half wore on. Back with bang after break. Heavily involved in all three of Benzema’s goals. Should have put Real 2-1 up but snatched at chance and fired over bar. AP

SUBS: Rodrygo – (On for Asensio 57’) 7: Helped give Real some extra width and stretch the PSG defence. Reuters

Eduardo Camavinga – (On for Kroos 57’) 7: All of Carlo Ancelotti’s substitutes paid off and French midfielder helped change game. Getty

Lucas Vazquez – (On for Carvajal 66’) 7: Harsh booking for minor touch on Mbappe. EPA

PSG RATINGS: Gianluigi Donnarumma - 5: Fantastic fingertip save at full stretch to turn Benzema shot round post 25 minutes in. Awful mistake to give ball away for Benzema’s opening goal and booked for protesting that he was fouled but error was own making. AP

Achraf Hakimi - 6: Given early headache down right by Vinicius Jnr’s pace but regained control and looked threat himself when bombing forward. Played Benzema narrowly onside for striker’s hat-trick finish and picked up a booking for fouling Vinicius Junior soon after. EPA

Marquinhos - 3: Some uncharacteristic howlers from Brazilian. Captain gifted ball to Vinicius Jnr with ludicrous backheel flick just before half-hour mark and was lucky not to be punished. Gave ball straight to Benzema for Real striker’s third goal. Getty

Presnel Kimpembe - 6: France defender was solid at back and was rarely troubled in first half. Called on to tidy up when Ansensio threatened just after break but was booked late on as game slipped away from PSG. Getty

Nuno Mendes - 6: Failed to time his run and was caught offside while setting up Mbappe’s disallowed first-half goal. Good going forward, not so convincing the other direction. Getty

Leandro Paredes - 6: Seventh-minute booking left him on knife-edge for rest of game and would have ruled him out of quarter-final first leg. Headed block on Valvderde blockbusting volley at start of second half. Getty

Danilo - 7: Chased and harried Real, doing the donkey work for more esteemed attacking teammates but couldn’t stop Real’s second-half onslaught. Getty

Marco Verratti - 6: Helped dictate midfield along with Messi in first half but, like all his teammates, completely lost control of game in second. AFP

Lionel Messi - 7: Linked up well with Mbappe and Neymar to set up first-half chances. Dinked one of those across goal himself but no teammate was there to finish. Influence and threat fell away as second half wore on until hitting roof of net with late free-kick. AFP

Kylian Mbappe - 9: Had two early strikes saved by Courtois and then had ball in the net but disallowed for offside. Did score in 39th minute, drilling home into corner after PSG counter-attack. Rounded keeper and scored another just after break but again denied by offside flag. Getty

Neymar - 6: Shot easily saved by keeper after linking up with Mbappe and Verratti. Sent Mbappe through for opening goal with first-time ball. Anonymous second 45 minutes. AP

SUBS: Idrissa Gueye – (On for Paredes 71’) 5: Midfielder brought to try and give PSG a bit of control back into game that Real were dominating but couldn’t turn tide. AFP

Angel Di Maria – (On for Danilo 81’) N/A. AP Julian Draxler – (On for Hakimi 88’) N/A.