Setting the Table: Champions League Cheat Sheet

Setting the Table: Champions League Cheat Sheet

This article is part of our Setting the Table series.

HomeWin
Chances
Clean Sheet
Chances
AwayWin
Chances
Clean Sheet
Chances
Draw
Chances
Real Madrid 0.69 0.38 Roma 0.12 0.10 0.20
Wolfsburg 0.63 0.39 Gent 0.13 0.14 0.24
Zenit St. Petersburg 0.46 0.38 Benfica 0.26 0.25 0.28
Chelsea 0.36 0.29 Paris Saint-Germain 0.36 0.29 0.28

HomeOver 1.5 GoalsUnder 1.5 GoalsAwayOver 1.5 GoalsUnder 1.5 Goals
Real Madrid 0.69 0.31 Roma 0.27 0.73
Wolfsburg 0.61 0.39 Gent 0.25 0.75
Zenit St. Petersburg 0.44 0.56 Benfica 0.27 0.73
Chelsea 0.35 0.65 Paris Saint-Germain 0.29 0.71

The second legs of the Champions League knockout rounds are always very exciting, as some teams have to play incredibly open to make up a goal differential or to try and grab at least one away goal. Here are the situations in each tie:

Real Madrid vs. Roma

First Leg: Madrid 2 - Roma 0 in Rome

Roma will have to attack as much as they can after dropping the opener 2-0 in Italy. It'll be an incredibly difficult task, as they'll have to win 3-0, at a minimum, to advance. While scoring that many isn't out of the question, as they've bagged at least three goals in four consecutive league matches, doing so at the Santiago Bernabeu will be a great challenge, as Los Blancos have allowed multiple goals at home just twice in 2016.

Cristiano Ronaldo scored four goals Saturday against Celta Vigo, and he now has nine goals in his last six matches, including one against Roma in the first leg.

Notable Fantasy Performances

Cristiano Ronaldo, Real Madrid: one goal on six shots (one on goal), two corners, three fouls drawn

James Rodriguez, Real Madrid: two shots, five crosses, four fouls drawn, four tackles won

Marcelo, Real Madrid: one assist, one shot, four crosses, two tackles won, one interception, one clean sheet

Wolfsburg v. Gent

First Leg: Wolfsburg 3 - Gent 2 in Ghent

The first leg of this tie was the highest scoring one of all the knockout round matches. Wolfsburg left Belgium with three away goals, though allowing two certainly leaves the door open for Gent to steal one in Germany, as a 2-0 win would see Gent through. Wolfsburg led 3-0 in the first matchup thanks to goals from Julian Draxler (two) and Max Kruse until Sven Kums scored in the 80th minute Kalifa Coulibaly found the back of the net eight minutes later.

Notable Fantasy Performances:

Julian Draxler, Wolfsburg: two goals on four shots (two on goal), one cross, one tackle won, three interceptions

Vieirinha, Wolfsburg: one assist, one shot, three crosses, three fouls drawn, two tackles won, one interception

Sven Kums, Gent: one goal on two shots (one on goal), three corners, two tackles won, one interception

Brecht Dejaeghere, Gent: one assist, two shots (one on goal), three corners, seven fouls drawn

Danjiel Milicevic, Gent: eight crosses, one foul drawn, one tackle won

Zenit St. Petersburg v. Benfica

First Leg: Benfica 1 - Zenit St. Petersburg 0 in Lisbon

Jonas' 90th-minute goal stole the win for Benfica, which was made even worse for the Russian side after Domenico Criscito was sent off to make him ineligible to play Wednesday.

Zenit have posted back-to-back clean sheets in domestic play since the first leg, though they've only scored once in those matches, which came from Mauricio off the bench.

On the flip side, Benfica have won three matches since they beat Zenit, scoring six goals in that span, including three from Jonas and two from Kostas Mitroglu.

Notable Fantasy Performances:

Jonas, Benfica: one goal, two shots (one on goal), one cross, two fouls drawn, one tackle won, one interception

Nicolas Gaitan, Benfica: one assist, three shots (one on goal), seven corners, three tackles won, two interceptions, one foul drawn

Andre Almeida, Benfica: one shot, five crosses, three fouls drawn, two tackles won, three interceptions

Chelsea v. Paris Saint-Germain

First Leg: PSG 2 - Chelsea 1 in Paris

Chelsea grabbed a vital away goal from John Obi Mikel of all people, but trail by a goal on aggregate thanks to first-leg scores from Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Edinson Cavani, the latter of whom scored off the bench.

Ibrahimovic is having a fantastic season, leading Ligue 1 with 23 goals (in 23 appearances) and co-leading it in assists with 10 (tied with teammate Angel Di Maria.)

Chelsea have lost just one match since Guus Hiddink took over for Jose Mourinho, which was the first leg of this tie. Diego Costa has been magnificent since the managerial change, and while he sat out Saturday's match against Stoke City with a "minor tendon injury," he's expected to start against the Parisians.

Notable Fantasy Performances:

Zlatan Ibrahimovic, PSG: one goal, seven shots (three on goal), three corners, two fouls drawn

Angel Di Maria, PSG: one assist, four shots (two on goal), 12 corners, one foul drawn, one tackle won, one interception

Marquinos, PSG: two shots, six corners, five tackles, two interceptions

Diego Costa, Chelsea: one assist, three shots (three on goal), one corner, three fouls drawn, one tackle, one interception

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Andrew M. Laird
Andrew is a former RotoWire contributor. He was the 2017 and 2018 FSWA Soccer Writer of the Year. He is a nine-time FSWA award finalist, including twice for Football Writer of the Year.
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