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Defensive Mourinho may get Chelsea into trouble, warns David Luiz
By Dejan Kalinic
Mar 10, 2015 09:50:00
The ex-Blues defender is well aware of what the manager will be telling his side ahead of the home leg of their Champions League tie but says that Paris Saint-Germain will threaten
Paris Saint-Germain defender David Luiz has warned Jose Mourinho that telling Chelsea to sit back against his side would be a dangerous tactic.
The Ligue 1 giants head to Stamford Bridge on Wednesday needing a goal after the first leg of their Champions League last-16 tie finished 1-1 in France.
David Luiz, who left Chelsea in June for the largest transfer fee ever paid for a defender, says that he knows what Mourinho will be telling his team before the second leg.
But the 27-year-old, who urges his team to believe that they can advance, feels that the Portuguese's usual approach could be dangerous for the hosts.
"I know how Jose will prepare for this; he will be telling the boys to be patient and hit us on the counterattack," David Luiz told the Daily Mirror.
"He knows that we need to score and that they don't. I know that is his way. We must be careful because I know that Chelsea have the ability to hurt on the counterattack but they must be careful as well.
"To sit back and just defend against Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Edinson Cavani and Ezequiel Lavezzi can also be very dangerous so it is not just us who have to be careful."
Real Madrid's front three of Karim Benzema, Gareth Bale and Cristiano Ronaldo have struggled in recent weeks but the Schalke boss says they remain formidable
Roberto Di Matteo says Schalke have no chance of completely shutting down Real Madrid's 'BBC' forward line but nonetheless believes that the German outfit can make things interesting by netting first in Tuesday's Champions League clash at the Santiago Bernabeu.
The Bundesliga side have arrived in the Spanish capital trailing 2-0 on aggregate after their last-16 first-leg clash in Gelsenkirchen three weeks ago.
However, Schalke will take heart from the fact that Madrid have failed to win in their last two Liga outings, drawing 1-1 at home to Villarreal before being beaten 1-0 in Bilbao at the weekend.
Madrid's famed front three of Karim Benzema, Gareth Bale and Cristiano Ronaldo are now coming under scrutiny but Di Matteo is refusing to read too much into reports of the BBC's demise.
"Three weeks ago I was asked about the crisis at Madrid – but I don't think there is a crisis," the Schalke boss told reporters on Monday.
"Real Madrid are a very strong side and it's very difficult to play at their level – we will try our best.
"We need to be well organised. I hope the media are right and their forwards are having a tough time – but it's impossible to stop them altogether.
"Athletic are a good team at home and they didn't allow Madrid to play in the style they are used to. Tomorrow will be different.
"But it would be a sensational experience for us to win. If we start scoring, it could get interesting.
"We will try to start the match with a strong line-up of players who are in good shape."
However, Di Matteo also admitted that on Tuesday night he will be pitting his wits against one of the finest tacticians in the game today.
"Carlo Ancelotti is one of the best coaches in the world, very successful," he added.
"I met him when I played for the Italian national team and he was the assistant coach."
"He has worked for very prestigious clubs and won many trophies."
Ronaldo set to go ahead of Messi and Raul as European football's highest scorer
By Ben Hayward
Mar 10, 2015 09:00:00
The Portuguese forward needs just one goal to surpass his Barcelona rival and the former Real Madrid striker as the continent's top marksman
Cristiano Ronaldo can pull clear of Barcelona rival Lionel Messi and former team-mate Raul and become the all-time leading goalscorer in European competitions if he scores for Real Madrid in Tuesday's Champions League clash against Schalke.
The Portuguese netted in the first leg of the sides' second-round tie in Gelsenkirchen last month to draw level with the Argentine attacker and the former Spain skipper on 76 strikes in Europe overall. A goal in the return at the Santiago Bernabeu will see him top the continental scoring charts ahead of Messi's meeting with Manchester City at Camp Nou next week.
Raul needed 168 games with Real and Schalke to reach 76 goals, while Ronaldo required just 117 and Messi only 95 to hit the same number.
The Argentine also leads the way with 75 goals in the Champions League, with Cristiano two behind on 73 and Raul's long-standing record of 71 now relegated to third place.
Ronaldo's 76 are made up of 73 Champions League strikes, one in the competition's qualifiers which does not count in his overall tally for the tournament and two in the Uefa Super Cup against Sevilla back in August.
Messi, meanwhile, has scored 75 of his 76 in the Champions League, with the other coming in Barca's Uefa Super Cup success against Porto in 2011.
Real lead Schalke 2-0 heading into the second leg.
Real Madrid set to break Champions League wins record
By Ben Hayward
Mar 10, 2015 09:00:00
Carlo Ancelotti's side have struggled in La Liga of late, but the holders will set a new mark for victories in Europe's premier club competition if they beat Schalke on Tuesday
Real Madrid will become the first side in the history of the Champions League to record 11 straight wins if they beat Schalke at the Santiago Bernabeu on Tuesday night.
Carlo Ancelotti's side have won their last 10 matches in European football's premier club competition since losing 2-0 at Borussia Dortmund in their quarter-final second leg last April.
Back-to-backs wins over Bayern Munich in the semi-finals were followed by a dramatic extra-time victory over city rivals Atletico in the Lisbon showpiece, before group-stage successes against Basel, Liverpool and Ludogorets (twice each) and a 2-0 first-leg triumph at Schalke in the second round last month.
A win on Tuesday would see Ancelotti's side better Bayern's 10 wins secured between April and December of 2013 at the end of Jupp Heynckes' reign and the beginning of Pep Guardiola's tenure at the Allianz Arena.
Barcelona's nine-match winning streak in 2002-2003 is the third-best run in the competition, while Dortmund racked up eight consecutive victories en route to the trophy in 1996-97 and another Guardiola side (Barca 2011-12) managed seven straight successes.
Real Madrid fail dramatically to make Champions League history
Mar 10, 2015 22:22:00
The current titleholders missed the chance to break the record for consecutive wins in Europe's premier cup competition, after sensationally losing at home to Schalke
Real Madrid have dramatically failed to break the record for consecutive wins in the Champions League.
The Spanish outfit went into Tuesday's last-16, second-leg clash with Schalke at the Santiago Bernabeu on the back of 10 consecutive tournament victories and were expected to have little difficulty in disposing of a side that they had beaten 2-0 in Gelsenkirchen three weeks ago.
However, despite going 3-2 ahead early in the second half through Karim Benzema, after twice coming from behind during the opening 42 minutes, Madrid were sensationally beaten 4-3 after Schalke went within one goal of dumping the reigning champions out of Europe.
Carlo Ancelotti's men had not failed to win a game in Europe's premier club competition since losing 2-0 at Borussia Dortmund in their quarter-final second leg last April.
Back-to-backs wins over Bayern in the semi-finals were followed by a dramatic extra-time victory over city rivals Atletico in the Lisbon showpiece in May, before group-stage successes against Basel, Liverpool and Ludogorets (twice each) and last month's win at Schalke.
However, Wednesday's surprise setback means that Madrid must remain content with a share of the record for consecutive Champions League wins with Bayern, who racked up 10 victories in a row between April and December of 2013 - a period which took in their Champions League triumph at Wembley under former boss Jupp Heynckes and the start of Pep Guardiola's current reign.
Barcelona's nine-match winning streak in 2002-2003 is the third-best run in the competition, while Dortmund racked up eight consecutive victories en route to the trophy in 1996-97 and another Guardiola side (Barca 2011-12) managed seven straight successes.
The former Blancos forward netted twice at the Bernabeu but it was not enough, as Carlo Ancelotti's men limped into the Champions League quarter-finals
Klaas-Jan Huntelaar hailed Schalke’s enterprising display against Real Madrid on Tuesday but expressed regret the German side failed to make it through to the Champions League quarter-finals.
Netherlands international Huntelaar scored twice against his former club as Schalke won 4-3 on the night but exited the competition 5-4 on aggregate.
The visitors were excellent throughout and could have caused one of the biggest upsets in recent times had Madrid goalkeeper Iker Casillas not partially redeemed himself for some earlier errors with a string of late saves.
Huntelaar told Uefa.com: “Of course we are happy about our game today, but we could have achieved more. We conceded too easily and we should have taken our lead into the break. They didn't feel comfortable at all.
"We had the chance to get more goals, especially with the big opportunity of [Benedikt] Howedes at the end. We did everything we could, but unfortunately we didn't succeed.
"We entered the pitch looking for a miracle and started to press them. That went really well and the Real fans turned against them. You could see that they didn't have much confidence."
Young midfielder Leroy Sane was also on the scoresheet and he was another to express a mixture of pride and disappointment.
He said: “We played very well. We weren't afraid and produced a good passing game. We should have scored once more. In the end we are more disappointed, than happy. It's very sad.”
Defender Howedes added: “We played a great game. We were very brave and were not overawed by a world-class team like Real Madrid. Congratulations to my team, we deserved more today.”
The Bundesliga side emerged with enormous credit after pushing Real Madrid all the way but it was not enough to see them through to the last eight of the Champions League
Schalke coach Roberto Di Matteo expressed “great disappointment” that his side failed to edge Real Madrid out of the Champions League on Tuesday.
The Bundesliga outfit pushed the defending champions all the way but, despite winning 4-3 on the night, exited the tournament 5-4 on aggregate.
"Our squad did everything this evening. We had a very young team on the pitch, we expressed ourselves well. To win at Madrid, scoring four goals and not go through, we feel great disappointment,” he told Sky.
Former Madrid forward Klaas-Jan Huntelaar threatened a famous upset with a stunning 85th-minute strike that meant Schalke needed to score just once more to progress on away goals.
The holders' 2-0 victory in Gelsenkirchen in the first leg ultimately proved enough to see them through - but the Bernabeu faithful were less than impressed, greeting the final whistle with a deafening chorus of jeers as Madrid's relative slump in form continued.
Cristiano Ronaldo had twice saved the hosts in a poor first-half showing as his headers cancelled out goals from Christian Fuchs and Huntelaar - the Portuguese's double making him the highest goalscorer in European competition.
Karim Benzema put Real ahead on the night shortly after half-time, only for Leroy Sane to curl home an exquisite equaliser for Schalke, before Huntelaar's superb finish set up a grandstand ending to the game.
“It was a great match for the spectators. We played very well but it's a strange feeling, to play that well and crash out nonetheless,” said Di Matteo.
“We hit the crossbar in the first leg and we hit it here, too. Luck was not on our side today. I want my team to play more football - and that's what we did here today."
Schalke are fifth in the Bundesliga and must now target a place in the competition next season, according to the Italian.
He added: “Our objective is to get our injured players back and return to the Champions League.”
'The goalkeeper's thrown the first three in' - Keane blasts Casillas after Schalke shambles
By Harry Sherlock
Mar 10, 2015 23:39:00
The former Manchester United midfielder criticised the goalkeeper after a poor performance, while Jamie Carragher believes David De Gea should replace him at Los Blancos
Roy Keane has slammed Iker Casillas after the Real Madrid goalkeeper endured a torrid evening during the club’s 4-3 defeat to Schalke at the Santiago Bernabeu on Tuesday, claiming the World Cup winner is no longer good enough for the Champions League holders.
The hosts headed into the last-16, second-leg clash with a seemingly comfortable 2-0 aggregate lead, but were given a scare at the Bernabeu, as a Klass-Jan Huntelaar double and goals from Christian Fuchs and Leroy Sane almost sealed a remarkable comeback.
Keane, though, refused to lavish praise on Roberto Di Matteo’s side, instead claiming that Casillas was at fault for making the tie so competitive, with Madrid only sneaking through 5-4 on aggregate.
"We say Schalke did well but the goalkeeper's thrown the first three in,” Keane said on ITV.
“If you want to get the big prizes you need to have a top goalkeeper - certainly a goalkeeper in form. On tonight's performances, they'll be in trouble for the quarters and semis.”
Keane also says that Casillas has slipped to the point where he is no longer of the required standard to play for Real and has called on Carlo Ancelotti to drop the Spaniard.
"That's the manager's job. It's not just tonight. His form's been poor, he's been criticised. You can't keep selecting a player because of what he's done in the past. On tonight's performance, he's certainly not good enough.”
Former Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher, meanwhile, believes Real should pursue a move for Manchester United goalkeeper David De Gea to replace Casillas.
“Madrid need a new keeper, De Gea wants to win trophies, no brainer,” the 37-year-old wrote on Twitter.
Real have been heavily linked with a move for De Gea in recent months, but Goal understands United are keen for the Spain international to sign a new contract at Old Trafford.
'I won't speak to the press again this season' - Ronaldo rages after Schalke scare
By Ben Hayward at the Bernabeu
Mar 10, 2015 23:53:00
The Portuguese forward was furious after Real Madrid only scraped through to the Champions League quarter-finals and has called a media blackout for the rest of 2014-15
An angry Cristiano Ronaldo told reporters that he will not speak to the press again until the end of the season after he helped Real Madrid survive a scare against Schalke and qualify for the last eight of the Champions League on Tuesday night.
The Portugal international headed two goals as the defending champions twice came from behind against the German side and drew level with Lionel Messi on 75 strikes in the Champions League, but Madrid ultimately lost 4-3 on the night and came within one goal of a humiliating exit in front of their own fans.
Ronaldo was visibly annoyed throughout the game and was caught on camera by Canal Plus telling team-mate Karim Benzema "this is embarrassing" during the closing stages.
He then began to storm off the pitch at the final whistle, only to be called back by captain Iker Casillas to applaud the fans in the centre circle.
Clearly unamused, he waited briefly before heading for the tunnel and appeared momentarily before the media later on.
"I'm not going to talk," he said in the mixed zone. "I won't talk to the press again until the end of the season."
Unhappy at recent reports over his recent dip in form and clearly disgusted at his side's poor performances of late (which also include a 1-0 defeat at Athletic Club on Saturday), the 30-year-old forward is thought to be considering his future at the Spanish side and now wants to focus fully on helping his team challenge for La Liga and the Champions League in the remainder of the current campaign.
The Frenchman was impressed with the Belgium goalkeeper's display in Paris and hopes he isn't in similarly inspired form on Wednesday
Laurent Blanc has admitted he has his fingers crossed that Thibaut Courtois has an off day when Paris Saint-Germain face Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.
The two sides drew 1-1 in the first leg of their last-16 clash on February 17, with the all-important away goal giving the Blues the upper hand ahead of Wednesday's second leg.
It could well have been very different, though, had Courtois not produced several saves to deny Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Edinson Cavani at the Parc des Princes.
The performance of the Belgium goalkeeper did not go unnoticed, with Blanc hoping the 22-year-old has a night to forget in west London.
"Tomorrow we know that we must score at least one goal against Chelsea to qualify. We know that. We have more experience than last year. Chelsea, we know, are better than last year.
"Courtois had a very good game in the first leg. I hope he will be less effective tomorrow night. As it stands Paris will be eliminated. It is up to us to secure our qualification."
PSG went into the first leg under a degree of pressure amid a stuttering Ligue 1 campaign which has seen Marseille and Lyon emerge as rivals at the top of the table.
Since that game, however, Blanc's side have made a marked improvement and sit just a point behind les Gones at the top of the table, with midfielder Blaise Matuidi in confident mood.
He added: "It is necessary that we approach the game with a single goal: to score. I think we are better now than before the first leg against Chelsea."
The PSG ace has struggled to score against teams managed by the Portuguese, who claims that there will be no tactics to nullify the striker's threat at Stamford Bridge
Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho says his side cannot focus solely on Zlatan Ibrahimovic in their Champions League clash with Paris Saint-Germainon Wednesday.
Ibrahimovic worked with Mourinho at Inter Milan, but has never scored against a team managed by the Portuguese in seven attempts.
And the former Real Madrid boss says he has no intention of setting up his team to specifically counter the threat posed by the 'fantastic' Sweden international.
Mourinho told reporters: "I don't have a plan for him as he's very difficult to play against. He's such a good player but we're focused on the team.
"This is what we're going to do. We know Zlatan is a fantastic one. We're going to focus on the team and ourselves."
Mourinho has also called on the Stamford Bridge crowd to roar the side home in the decisive tie, with the scores currently locked level at 1-1 after the first leg.
"I think somebody tomorrow has to be a little bit magic and that's the crowd," he added.
"We played the (League Cup) semi against Liverpool and it was fantastic. The crowd was an extra. We had a fantastic stadium supporting the home team. Hopefully we can have that in our favour."
Meanwhile, Mourinho has confirmed that Nemanja Matic is set to feature against PSG after recovering from an ankle knock.
"We're happy he's back," he said. "He's fit to play and he is important. He's had no football for two weeks and no training because he was injured. He's going to play tomorrow in his normal position."
Eden Hazard was fouled nine times throughout the first leg of their Champions League last-16 tie, and the Portuguese has hit out at the tactics of Laurent Blanc's side
Jose Mourinho has taken a swipe at Paris Saint-Germain ahead of the second leg of their Champions League last-16 tie by claiming the French champions are the "most aggressive" team Chelsea have faced this season.
Laurent Blanc's side travel to west London with the tie finely poised after a 1-1 draw in Paris in mid-February.
Mourinho was unhappy with the treatment dished out to Eden Hazard at Parc des Princes, with the Belgium international being fouled a record nine times throughout the game - though the referee issued just two yellow cards to PSG players during the clash.
"The most agressive team we've played this season is Paris Saint-Germain," the Chelsea boss told reporters on Wednesday.
"I have to be fair, I thought an English team would never be surprised by aggressive play because we have it in our country.
"We've played against sides from the Championship in the Cup, against teams from League One and Shrewsbury [Town] from League Two, but the most aggressive team was PSG.
"For me, that was a real surprise. With players of such quality, I was expecting more football and less aggression."
Mourinho also criticised the assertion that PSG dominated the opening leg, claiming that they "dominated in everything except the result".
"It depends on your concept of football. If dominate is the number of chances, yes, Paris had more chances," he said. "If dominate is to make foul after foul. Or to move the ball without progression."
Political unrest in the east of Ukraine forced the club to vacate their home and, ahead of Wednesday's tie with Bayern, their coach revealed the extent of their issues
Losing their stadium, supporters and home city has ruined Shakhtar Donetsk's motivation, according to coach Mircea Lucescu.
Shakhtar have been playing their matches in Lviv since July last year due to pro-Russian separatists taking control of Donetsk and the deadly fighting in eastern Ukraine shows no sign of abating.
Ahead of the club's Champions League last 16 second leg at Bayern Munich on Wednesday, in which they will attempt to build on the 0-0 result from the opening leg, Lucescu revealed the sapped morale within his ranks.
"This is a very difficult situation for us. It's hard to motivate the players," he told reporters. "We have lost so much, even the sympathy of our fans.
"Few people come to our games, but that's also because we don't play in our home. People in Lviv see us as a team from the east and that is very difficult for us. We're working under very difficult conditions.
"Therefore, it is very difficult to motivate the team and deal with the situation. Also, the players can't hide from that."
Pep Guardiola's men have looked rampant in recent matches and the 69-year-old lauded his Bayern counterpart as one of the top trainers throughout his long career in football.
"In my career I've rarely seen such a good coach," Lucescu added. "We haven't got a great friendship because we have played against each other often.
"Though you might remember that we lost against his Barcelona in the 2010-11 Champions League quarter-finals.
"Bayern have outstanding players. If you have a look at their squad, their players are among the strongest in Europe. We simply want to do ourselves proud and play good football."
Thiago Silva 'very confident' PSG will knock out Chelsea
By Miles Chambers
Mar 11, 2015 11:13:18
The defender described the Champions League clash as "the game of the season" for his side, who will reach the last eight with a victory at Stamford Bridge
Thiago Silva is "very confident" that Paris Saint-Germain can cause a Champions League upset by eliminating Chelsea at the last-16 stage on Wednesday.
After a first leg 1-1 draw at the Parc des Princes, the Ligue 1 side head to Stamford Bridge knowing that only a win or score draw will offer a chance at a place in the quarter-finals.
PSG were knocked out by Jose Mourinho's men on away goals at Stamford Bridge last season in the European competition, but the Brazilian centre-back is adamant that this year they will not slip up through complacency.
"I think we have a great chance," Thiago Silva told L'Equipe . "The PSG team is very strong this year, even if we must improve our performances in attack.
"Last year against Chelsea we won 3-1 at home and, ironically, I think we played even better in the first leg this campaign than we did in that win. That is why I am very confident for the second leg.
"This is the game of the season. Motivation in the Champions League is higher than in Ligue 1. I think we are much stronger than last year's second leg at Stamford Bridge.
"Chelsea are a great team, but we have the opportunity to beat them. Last year, the first leg maybe gave us a lot of confidence but, when we got there, we weren't concentrating enough.
"In my view, we said: 'We have already won!' This time it's different. We need an outcome, and it's better that we go out there with this in mind."
Thiago Silva also highlighted international team-mate Willian, Brazilian-born Diego Costa and Belgian attacker Eden Hazard as Chelsea's main threats to Laurent Blanc's men.
"It's hard to say how they've changed," the former AC Milan man added. "They have quality players who can make the difference at any time, like Diego Costa, Hazard and Willian.
"That's why they are Premier League leaders and we will have to stay very focused. They are as strong on set pieces - very dangerous in fact - but so are we!"
Fabregas: Chelsea will not just defend against PSG
By Harry Sherlock
Mar 11, 2015 09:17:00
The Spain international believes that the Blues must go on the attack against Paris Saint-Germain in their Champions League second-leg encounter on Wednesday evening
Cesc Fabregas has vowed that Chelsea will play a defensive game against Paris Saint-Germain when the two sides meet in the Champions League last 16 on Wednesday.
The Blues hold a slight advantage heading into the decisive game, having earned a 1-1 draw at Parc des Princes on February 17.
Fabregas, though, insists that he and his team-mates will attack when Laurent Blanc's side visit Stamford Bridge, as they look to seal their progression to the quarter-finals.
"We want to go through," he told reporters on Tuesday. "We have to make it happen. We will not sit back and wait for them to come.
"We will try and create opportunities to score. They're a fantastic side."
Chelsea, who have already won the League Cup this season, currently sit atop the Premier League and are well placed in the Champions League but Fabregas believes that they must improve their killer instinct if they are to win the treble.
"This is the thing: if I have to say what we're missing a bit this season, it's that moment when, if we can kill, we have to kill," he added. "There have been moments where we've not done that and allowed other players to push and be dangerous.
"We have to be more determined, especially when we go forward. When we get one goal, we have to go for the second and third. That's the only thing we can really improve.
"Hopefully we will have that killer instinct against PSG and go for the game from the first second."
Fabregas has also promised the club's fans that he will give his all to help Chelsea win the Champions League for the second time, having never won the competition himself.
"Well, physically and mentally, I will give everything for Chelsea to win it," he said. "I'd be lying if I said it wasn't a competition that is special to me. Ask a player what he wants to win in his career, he'll say the World Cup and the Champions League.
"It's not an extra pressure but I want to win it. I will give my best and hopefully we will go through into the next round. We'll go game by game.
"Sometimes the best team doesn't win. You have to be fortunate with the draw or your performance on the day. We have to take it to the next level."
Porto want to reach Champions League final, says Herrera
By Enis Koylu
Mar 11, 2015 00:01:00
The Portuguese side have reached the last eight for the first time in six years but the Mexican midfielder says that they have no intention of stopping there
Porto midfielder Hector Herrera says his side are aiming to reach the Champions League final after securing a place in the last eight with a 4-0 win over Basel.
The Dragao outfit have not reached the quarter-finals since 2008-09, when they were eliminated by Manchester United, but redressed that record with a 4-0 victory over the Swiss titleholders on Tuesday that saw them through 5-1 on aggregate.
The Mexico international, who scored his side's second goal in the rout, was enthused by Porto's progression but is far from satisfied.
"We have achieved a beautiful goal and it's very important for the players and for the club to be among the top eight teams in Europe," he is quoted as saying by Record.
"We must continue to work in this way to stay in the competition. We're not only thinking of the quarter-finals, we're thinking of reaching the final.
"We started strong and focused, confident and certain in what we wanted to do. This team has been working well. We knew that we must always be at 100 per cent, with balance, for these kinds of games.
"In the Champions League, any team can surprise you."
The Spaniard is realistic over his future and believes he would be at risk if his side fail to make the quarter-finals of the Champions League
Pep Guardiola has admitted he could lose his job if Bayern Munich are beaten by Shakhtar Donetsk in the last-16 of the Champions League on Wednesday.
Bayern are favourites to advance to the quarter-finals following a 0-0 draw in the first leg in Ukraine, which they secured despite seeing Xabi Alonso sent off.
However, Guardiola is well aware of the expectations at the Allianz Arena, and believes even reaching the final might not be enough to secure his future at the club.
He said at his pre-match press conference: "I am still young, but I know what would happen if we do not go through to the next stage.
"I am the coach of a really big club and I know that it is a problem if we don't progress to the quarter-finals or the semi-finals, even the final. That is part of the business and I am prepared for it."
That said, the former Barcelona coach remains supremely confident of reaching the next stage and is refusing to contemplate the possibility of defeat.
"I am very optimistic, I have already said that we will win this game and I have not changed my mind. We are playing at home and we will have success.
"Perhaps there will be surprises for us, we do not know yet what kind of game they will play - defensively or not. Tomorrow we will have to win the game, we know this.
"If we lose tomorrow, the Champions League campaign is over for us. Unfortunately just one of the two teams will be allowed to progress and I am confident that it will be us."
Bayern warmed up for Wednesday night's clash by beating Hannover 3-1 in the Bundesliga on Saturday.
Courtois: Chelsea must not park the bus against Paris Saint-Germain
By Chris Davie
Mar 10, 2015 11:28:00
The Belgian goalkeeper believes that his side should be aiming to win their second leg at Stamford Bridge and backs Eden Hazard to become the best player in the world
Thibaut Courtois believes that Chelsea must not rely on their away-goal advantage when they take on Paris Saint-Germain in the second leg of their quarter-final clash.
Jose Mourinho's men secured a 1-1 draw at the Parc des Princes in February and a goalless stalemate at Stamford Bridge on Wednesday evening would see them progress to the quarter-finals of the competition.
But Courtois is wary of taking an ultra-cautious approach against the French champions and feels that Chelsea should be aiming to win the second leg.
"We are confident but we expect a very difficult game," the goalkeeper told RMC.
"PSG will come here to score goals. It will be a very tough game. We are ready and we hope to win in front of our fans.
"We need to see the tactics that the coach will put in place. What is certain is that we cannot wait. We must defend well but do not aim for a 0-0 because, if we concede a goal, it's PSG who qualify with a 1-0 win. I think we should play with our qualities, trying to score goals to win this game.
"PSG are a very good team. They have a powerful attack, good players in the middle, solid defenders and a good goalkeeper. This is a team that can reach the final."
Eden Hazard has been one of the key influences in Chelsea's forward line this season and Courtois has tipped the Belgium international to become the best player in the world.
"He is not yet at the level of Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, who are above all other players," he added. "But Eden has the potential to get there. He's only 24 years old. He can still improve.
"He has the potential to be a future Ballon d'Or winner but, as Messi and Ronaldo play like that, with 30 goals in 30 games, it will not be easy for him."
Courtois also praised Kurt Zouma following the 20-year-old's breakthrough into Mourinho's first-team plans this season.
"Zouma has a lot of talent," he enthused. "He is strong. He has a truly exceptional calmness. He is strong with his head. He plays well with the ball at his feet. He will continue to grow and improve.
"I think he can become one of the best defenders in the world if it continues like this. He really is a very good player."
