Champions League: Chelsea head to Real Madrid for quarter-final second leg as defence hangs in balance

Chelsea 3-1 down ahead of their Champions League quarter-final second leg at Real Madrid; Man City take a slender one-goal advantage to Atletico Madrid on Wednesday; Liverpool have one foot in semi-finals after 3-1 win over Benfica in first leg; Villarreal take 1-0 lead to Bayern Munich

The Champions League quarter-finals continue this week, and it starts with holders Chelsea heading to Real Madrid on Tuesday, before Liverpool and Manchester City play on Wednesday.

The second legs of the quarter-finals begin on Tuesday as holders Chelsea try to claw their way back from a 3-1 quarter-final first-leg defeat against 13-time winners Real – with Villarreal also in action at Bayern Munich.

Pep Guardiola’s City – fresh from Sunday’s exhilarating 2-2 draw against title rivals Liverpool – are also off to the Spanish capital as they face Atletico Madrid, taking a 1-0 lead into the second leg after last week’s win at the Etihad, looking to reach the semi-finals for a second consecutive year.

Liverpool host Benfica at Anfield with one foot in the final four, after a 3-1 win in Lisbon last Tuesday, as they continue their push for an historic quadruple, with one eye firmly on Saturday’s FA Cup semi-final against City on Saturday.

Make-or-break week for Chelsea

Chelsea face the monstrous task of becoming just the second team in Champions League history to overturn a two-goal deficit following a first-leg home defeat when they play at the Bernabeu on Tuesday night.

If they are unsuccessful in Spain, Chelsea’s whole season rests on the outcome of Sunday’s FA Cup semi-final against Crystal Palace at Wembley, with the Blues comfortable in third and having no hope of a late title push.

Chelsea recovered well after back-to-back defeats to Brentford and Real by thrashing Southampton 6-0 on Saturday, but head coach Thomas Tuchel still feels a comeback is unlikely.