Chelsea face tough tie against Benfica

Chelsea’s reward for their stunning Champions League victory over Napoli is a quarter-final tie against Benfica.

The Blues will travel to Portugal for the first leg on March 27 before entertaining Benfica in the return fixture on April 4. The winners will face either AC Milan or Barcelona in the last four, with the first game on home soil and those who bet with Bet Victor will know how tough that game will be.

Elsewhere in the draw, Marseille face Bayern Munich and Apoel Nicosia take on Real Madrid.

Chelsea caretaker boss Roberto di Matteo expected a tough draw and believes that is exactly what the London club have got.

“When you get down to the last eight teams, any draw is difficult. I’ve seen Benfica many times. They were in Man United’s group. It’s a tough game for us,” said Di Matteo.

Chelsea overcame a 3-1 first-leg deficit to dump Napoli out of the competition on a memorable night at Stamford Bridge. Branislav Ivanovic’s extra-time winner gave Chelsea an incredible 4-1 win.

Di Matteo refused to look past the Benfica clash and towards a possible semi-final meeting with holders Barcelona.

“Are you writing off AC Milan straight away, as easy as that – the leaders of Serie A? Game by game – that’s what I’ve learnt in my playing career and my coaching career,” added the Italian.

Benfica progressed to the knockout stages after topping a group containing Manchester United. The Portuguese outfit booked their place in the last eight with a 4-3 aggregate victory over Zenit St Petersburg and the Victor Chandler odds show they are real battlers.

Two Chelsea players – David Luiz and Ramires – will face their former club.

Benfica sports director and former player Rui Costa said: “Everyone knows Chelsea’s potential. We’re ready for anything.”

Chelsea will be hoping to continue their resurgence during the rest of competition, but it will take a good side to prevent Spanish giants Barcelona and Real Madrid from meeting in the final.

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