The champions seek to spark a phenomenal comeback against the challengers on Tuesday night, as Chelsea travel to the Bernabeu to meet Real Madrid in the second leg of their Champions League quarter-final.
Carlo Ancelotti's side travelled back to base with a 3-1 win in the bag from the first leg at Stamford Bridge, as Kai Havertz's header proved paltry in comparison to another Karim Benzema hat-trick.
The prospect of a league and cup double remains alive for Real Madrid, who remain out of sight in La Liga after securing a comfortable 2-0 win over Getafe at the weekend.
Meanwhile, Thomas Tuchel certainly got the reaction that he was hoping for from his Chelsea players at the weekend, as the Blues thumped Southampton 6-0 at St Mary's to retain their grip on third place in the table.
Ahead of Tuesday's second leg, Sports Mole picks a combined XI from both squads, using only players expected to be available for the showdown.
Edouard Mendy will hold his hands up and say he was at fault for Benzema's hat-trick goal in the first leg, but that mistake was uncharacteristic from a goalkeeper who already has five Champions League clean sheets to his name this term. Such a tally is one more than that of former Blue Thibaut Courtois, but we could not overlook the Belgian for the number one spot while he continues to star as the Blancos' last line of defence.
Cesar Azpilicueta would be a strong candidate for this XI, but the Spaniard still remains a slight doubt after COVID-19 infection. Dani Carvajal and Reece James have not been without their injury problems this term, but the Chelsea man's greater contributions on the attacking front sees him get the nod.
The other side of the defence is a throwback to David Alaba's days as a left-back for Bayern Munich, with the Austrian more comfortable in a central position these days but still chipping in at the other end with two goals and four assists in all competitions, and he beats Marcos Alonso and Ferland Mendy to the left-back berth in our XI.
With Eder Militao being forced to sit this one out through suspension, the centre-backs pick themselves. Thiago Silva was one of several players who did not enjoy their finest hours in Chelsea shirts during the first leg, but the Brazilian is showing no signs of slowing down at 37 and was a simple selection. The long-term future of his teammate Antonio Rudiger remains unclear, but four goals and four assists are respectable stats for a defender who is one of the first names on Tuchel's teamsheet nowadays.
There can be no denying the quality that Chelsea possess in the engine room, but it is arguably dwarfed by Real Madrid's timeless trio, with Casemiro acting as the dominant force in the Blancos' engine room week in week out and edging out N'Golo Kante for the number six role in our XI.
Federico Valverde and Eduardo Camavinga sure are bright prospects for both the present and future, but displacing Toni Kroos and Luka Modric even in their golden years is proving to be an uphill battle, with the former already coming up with two goals in this season's Champions League while Modric oozes class no matter the opposition - scoring three goals and providing eight assists this season at the age of 36.
There is one spot for a Chelsea playmaker in the XI, though, with Mason Mount's new hairstyle doing him wonders against Southampton with two goals and an assist - taking him up to 23 goal contributions for the season in all competitions - and he finds his way in over Isco, Marco Asensio, Hakim Ziyech and Christian Pulisic.
Romelu Lukaku is dealing with an Achilles problem but was never going to force his way in here, and while Havertz's header in the first leg has kept the tie alive, Karim Benzema was the talk of the town at Stamford Bridge. Ageing like a fine wine, the 34-year-old has now become the highest scoring Frenchman in a single Champions League campaign with 11 and was the first name in our XI while he seeks to add to his 50 - yes, 50 - goal contributions this season (37 strikes and 13 assists).
With Eden Hazard still sidelined and failing to make the impact at the Bernabeu he would have hoped, the final spot in our XI belongs to Vinicius Junior, who set up Benzema's first header in last week and is now fulfilling his potential at Real with 17 goals and 16 assists from 42 appearances in the 2021-22 season.
Ben Knapton
