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Wednesday will conclude with two matches the UEFA Champions League round of 16.
London "Chelsea" - "Napoli" First leg: 1-3 Venue: "Stamford Bridge" Stadium, London (England) Kick-off: 21.45 (Lithuanian time) Referee: Felix Brych (Germany) Broadcast: "Viasat Sport Baltic" (live)
In the changing room of the coaches, the London "Chelsea" team will seek to prove that even a painful defeat away did not diminish their hopes of advancing to the quarter-finals against the powerful "Napoli" team.
Roberto Di Matteo replaced Andre Villas Boas as the coach and started with two consecutive victories, but admitted that success will be needed on Wednesday to eliminate the "Napoli" team, which has won six consecutive matches.
"We are really looking forward to this match. We know the task is very difficult, but the players are in good physical shape, almost all healthy, so we are confident," said Italian Di Matteo.
"Napoli" deserve praise for what they have already achieved in this tournament. We need to play well and hope for success - only by combining these two things can we hope for a ticket to the next stage. I would be proud if we could do it."
However, this specialist will have to do without the suspended Raul Meireles, and defender Jose Bosingwa is unlikely to appear on the field due to ankle ligament problems that have been bothering him for several weeks.
Meanwhile, "Napoli" coach Walter Mazzarri hopes that the advantage will not be wasted: "We understand what to expect and what the opponents are capable of. The changes in the coaches' staff have brought some changes, but not much tactically. The first two victories gave them a little confidence, but I have no doubt in my team."
He continued: "If the opponents play as I am used to seeing them, we have nothing to fear. My players have improved significantly over the past years, gaining respect and experience. Playing well, we can match any club.
"It's great that we managed to achieve what "Napoli" boasted in the eighth and ninth decades with Diego Maradona and others. We are used to surprises, so any result that allows us to advance to the next stage will satisfy me. However, I would like us to score one or two goals."
"Chelsea" hopes to secure their first home victory in the Champions League knockout stage after five consecutive winless matches, but they will have to do it against a tough "Napoli" side - the Italians do not have major injury problems.
Real Madrid - Moscow CSKA First leg: 1-1 Venue: "Santiago Bernabeu" Stadium, Madrid (Spain) Kick-off: 21.45 (Lithuanian time) Referee: Stephane Lannoy (France) Broadcast: TV6 (live)
Real Madrid is undoubtedly the favorite to eliminate David Shembe's club, but after a draw in Moscow, coach Jose Mourinho expects a tough match.
Last Saturday, the Spanish team secured their 30th victory in 34 national league matches and maintained a ten-point lead over second-placed Barcelona, so they could prepare calmly for the match against CSKA, who have won only six out of 24 matches in all competitions.
Mourinho assured that "Real" will attack: "We will play with three forwards. If we feel that the fans support us, it will be a big push. But it should be borne in mind that football sometimes has surprises, and the better team loses. So we are facing a tough match against a strong team, which knows how to defend.
"So a victory for CSKA would not be a miracle - they just need to play well, and we - poorly. However, I try to be optimistic and await our victory. After all, in two years we have played 19 Champions League matches, of which we lost only one."
The Moscow team will have reason to fear Cristiano Ronaldo - the forward has scored 46 goals in 45 matches in all competitions, so he will undoubtedly seek to improve this record in front of his own fans. Motivation should come from Barcelona star Lionel Messi: the Portuguese's rival for the title of the world's best player last week set a Champions League record with five goals against Bayer Leverkusen.
However, CSKA coach Leonid Slutsky did not reveal his tactics early: "There is no magic answer on how to stop the "Real" attacking machine, but we must bear in mind that they are particularly dangerous during fast attacks. We expect their aggressive game and desire to win, not to maintain a 0-0 score. But we are not afraid. The players are experienced, so we set the goal of progressing to the next stage."
And added: "Of course, Mourinho's achievements are impressive, but the image created in the media may not necessarily reflect this person. We have interacted and he has definitely left the impression of an open and idea-sharing person."
CSKA will be without one of their leaders, Alan Dzagoev, so their hopes of recovering after five consecutive defeats in the Russian championship against the strong "Real" seem bleak.
