Spartak Moscow-Chelsea: UEFA Champions League Preview

Chelsea revisit the scene of their fateful Champions League final against Manchester United in 2008, in which John Terry slipped while taking a penalty kick, missing the goal and leaving the London club still without a Champions League title. Spartak Moscow’s Luzhniki Stadium already haunts Chelsea, but now that they’ll be playing on artificial turf, the team is reluctant to create more nightmares for their players. Rather than risk its players knees, the Blues left many players behind, and may not play some that made the trip.

That news must be music to Spartak’s ears. The Moscow side has won both of its Champions League matches and looks to take first place in Group F if they beat the visitors. Manager Valery Karpin noted that he needed to “put the handcuffs on” Didier Drogba and Nicholas Anelka, but considering Drogba didn’t make the trip, it seems he’s safe in that regard. If Anelka’s play this past weekend is anything to go on, Karpin shouldn’t be too afraid of the Frenchman, either, but he should probably take the wider view and not discount Chelsea’s top goalscorer.

Projected Lineup, Spartak Moscow: (4-4-2): Dikan - Parshivlyuk, Pareja, Suchy, Makeev - Ananidze/McGeady, Sheshukov, Ibson, Dmitri Kombarov - Welliton, Ari

Projected Lineup, Chelsea: Carlo Ancelotti said he wouldn’t know who would play until he saw how they performed on the artificial surface. My guess (4-3-3) Cech-Van Aanholt, Terry, Bruma, Ferreira-Mikel, Zhirkov, Essien-Malouda, Anelka, Sturridge

Key Battle: Chelsea versus the pitch. With its bitter memories combined with the now-artificial turf, the Londoners are likely to start off the match feeling a touch uncomfortable. The man most likely to keep them on their toes will be Brazilian striker Welliton, who is the best in the Russian Premier League. John Terry will be tasked with subduing Welliton, which means the defender will have to exorcise old demons very quickly.

Battle Within The Battle: Call this the “Match Without Alex.” It applies to either team, as Spartak are missing their playmaker, Alex, who is out with a thigh injury, while Chelsea are missing defender Alex, who is still pained from his own thigh injury. Chelsea win the battle of the missing players, however, with Didier Drogba, Frank Lampard, and Ramires all out, and Ancelotti trying to protect the fragile knees of Michael Essien by keeping him on the bench. Drogba will be the greatest miss for the Blues, but considering Anelka’s scored almost all his goals in the absence of the forward, Chelsea are probably not biting their fingernails just yet.

Prediction: With Chelsea missing so many of its starters, and possibly resting more, this could be Spartak’s time to shine.