Thomas Tuchel has warned his Chelsea side that Lille have ‘nothing to lose’ ahead of the club’s Champions League last-16 second leg.
Chelsea travel to face the Ligue 1 champions on Wednesday evening, with the west Londoners protecting a 2-0 advantage from the first meeting between the teams at Stamford Bridge last month.
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Lille have kept clean sheets in each of their last five league fixtures and Tuchel has warned his side against complacency ahead of the return led, praising the performance of Jocelyn Gourvennec’s side despite defeat last time out.
“I think they played well at Stamford Bridge,” Tuchel told his pre-match press conference. “They were very physical, attacked high up the pitch. It was impressive. They had a good pressing game, were very brave, and had the mentality they had nothing to lose.
“I know the stadium well and the atmosphere the fans create. They will want to win and have nothing to lose. I know they like being in these situations and they will give everything to put the pressure on us and ask questions of us.
“They will play an attacking 4-4-2 that is aggressive, fluid and direct. We’ll have to be ready for that. But we are also confident in ourselves.
“It’s half-time right now. No match is decided by a 2-0 scoreline. The second half is tomorrow (Wednesday) and we’ll have to produce another top performance.
“Lille played on Friday (a 0-0 draw at home with St-Etienne) so they’ve had a good amount of time to recover. That is why we have to be ready physically and mentally for a tough game.”
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