Chelsea analysis: Willian stars on Eden Hazard's audition, but Lionel Messi punishes Antonio Conte's defence

Simon Johnson21 February 2018

Chelsea have it all to do in the Champions League as Lionel Messi earned Barcelona a 1-1 draw in the first leg of their last-16 tie at Stamford Bridge.

The spoils were shared at Stamford Bridge as Lionel Messi cancelled out Willian's second-half opener to see the tie head into the second leg all square at 1-1.

Willian made sure it was third-time lucky as he finally got the goal he searched for just after the hour mark.

He hit the post twice in the first half but slotted home from the edge of the box after 62 minutes, while Messi replied as he picked out the bottom corner with 15 minutes remaining.

Simon Johnson assesses the key points at Stamford Bridge...

Conte rediscovers his passion for the game

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The Chelsea coach has been so subdued of late, he has been simply unrecognisable on the sideline.

Since arriving on these shores in 2016, Conte has established a reputation for passionate celebrations and angry rants to anyone within earshot in and outside the technical area.

But lately he has looked resigned to his fate as Chelsea start to look at the likes of Luis Enrique to replace him.

The sight of him barely moving a muscle as Chelsea succumbed to Watford just over a fortnight ago was startling.

In Pictures | Champions League round of 16, first legs | 2017/18

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Yet here Conte was back to his snarling best and not only that, made one of the tactical decisions of the season.

Instead of playing with Olivier Giroud or Alvaro Morata up front, he returned to the 'False Nine' system that has failed to impress in recent months.

But it was inspired as the pace of Willian and Pedro caused the visitors a constant threat and also helped out on the defensive side.

Only a defensive mistake denied Conte and Chelsea the win they deserved.

Barcelona's signing of Paulinho looks all the more bizarre

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It is a bit of an understatement to suggest were were a few raised eyebrows when Barcelona signed Paulinho last year.

There have been a fair few Brazilians to grace the Camp Nou over the years, but for the midfielder didn't seem to belong in such company.

After all, his two-year spell at Tottenham was hardly a qualified success and he ended up trying his luck in China with Guangzhou Evergrande.

Perhaps if Ousmane Dembele had been more match fit tonight, he would have played instead of Paulinho.

But the 29-year-old got the nod instead and he was largely ineffective and was substituted after the break.

He also let the home side off the hook in the first half when he sent a free header wide of the post after being found superbly by Messi.

Willian takes centre stage on Hazard's audition

AP

The build-up in some quarters to the first leg was centred around Hazard and the possibility of him joining Real Madrid.

There has been speculation for months about whether Barcelona's rivals will be making a bid for Chelsea's prize asset come the summer.

One could understand if Real Madrid were tuning in to have a close look at how the Belgian played against the La Liga leaders.

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But while Hazard sure had some nice touches and moments, it was actually Willian that stood out.

Willian himself has spoken of his desire to move to one of the Spanish heavyweights, yet he didn't go easy on Barcelona tonight.

The Brazilian was a constant menace, his pace and dribbling a real threat every time he approached goal.

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Bad luck denied him twice in the first half as two fine shots struck the post, but a sublime strike after the break gave him the goal and lead Chelsea merited.

On this form, Willian is sure to start the second leg, but all eyes will still be on hazard.

Has Luis Suarez lost his bite in Europe?

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Suarez has clearly enjoyed himself at Barcelona since leaving Liverpool for £75m in 2014.

A tally of 143 goals has shown that he has been lethal in front of the net for the Catalan Giants, however the Uruguay international has suddenly seen his mojo fade on the continent.

Suarez went into the game without a goal in the Champions League for 791 minutes and never looked like ending the drought here.

Most of the game passed him by and one effort early in the second half didn't even dribble off the pitch for a goal kick.

There was still the odd flash of quality, like one surging run past Andreas Christensen, but a sign of his desperation was shown when he was booked for diving.

But Chelsea will still see him as a major threat to their hopes in the return leg.

Messi has Christensen to thank

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Just when Chelsea were on top and more likely to extend their advantage, they shot themselves in the foot.

The game-plan to negate Messi had worked to such a degree that the Argentina international was conspicuous by his absence come the second half.

But when you face a team of this quality, you have to maintain your concentration throughout - just as captain Gary Cahill told Standard Sport in the build-up.

Only Christensen will know what he was trying to do when he did the cardinal sin of passing it across Chelsea's own area.

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With the ball evading his team-mates, Andreas Iniesta had the simple task of squaring it to an unmarked Messi to tuck home.

The nature of the Argentinian's celebration spoke volumes. He is arguably the greatest player the world has ever seen, but finally scoring at the ninth attempt against Chelsea was clearly a great relief.

It also means Barcelona will be strong favourites to progress to the last eight next month.

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