IT’S been a long 10 weeks but this evening and tomorrow night finally see the return of the Champions League as the knockout stages begin with just 16 teams left.
Tonight, Chelsea will travel to Paris to face Prais Saint German (PSG) in what is fast becoming becoming a regular clash in the Champions League knockout round. They have met in the past two season and only away goals have seperated them then.
Ahead of the clash, security has been beefed up and hundreds of armed cops will be on duty around the Parc des Princes after suicide bombers tried to storm a match at the Stade de France last November
Hundreds of armed police will be on duty around the Parc des Princes ahead of the match.
The increased measures come in the wake of the horror attacks by Islamic extremists in November that left 130 people dead.
Three suicide bombers also attempted to storm the Stade de France where France were playing Germany that evening.
Metro stations from the city centre to the stadium will be patrolled by more officers and there will be further, intensive precautions around the Chelsea team base in the city as manager Guus Hiddink and his players prepare for the match. No-one apart from accredited personnel will be allowed entry.
Chelsea will go into their tie against Paris Saint-Germain on the back of their biggest league win this season, while PSG’s 16-game unbeaten run was halted by Lille in their 0-0 draw in the Ligue 1.
Goals from Chelsea’s masked hitman Diego Costa, Pedro Rodriguez, Willian and substitute Bertrand Traore gave the English defending champions a confidence boost ahead of the Paris trip.
PSG manager Laurent Blanc made numerous changes with one eye on tonight’s tie, with leading marksmen Zlatan Ibrahimovic and captain Thiago Silva, the two most obvious absentees while the likes of Angel Di Maria and Marco Verratti started on the bench.
