Chelsea predicted XI vs Bayern Munich: Tammy Abraham to get the nod over Olivier Giroud

Chelsea take on Bayern Munich in the first-leg of their Champions League last-16 tie at Stamford Bridge on Tuesday.   

Frank Lampard’s side come into the match on a high after defeating Tottenham Hotspur 2-1 on Saturday to keep hold of fourth spot in the Premier League.

In Europe, the Blues advanced to this stage by finishing second behind Valencia in their group, with last season’s semi finalists Ajax surprisingly exiting the competition with bottom placed Lille.

Now they face one of the toughest tests the continent has to offer as they face Bundesliga leaders Bayern – a re-match of the 2012 final Chelsea – with Lampard in the side – famously won on penalties.

The last time the German side played in London they famously defeated Tottenham Hotspur 7-2 in October on their way to topping a group which also contained Olympiacos and Crvena Zvezda.

So what team will Lampard pick to try and take a decent scoreline to the Allianz Arena in a fortnight? Here we predict the Chelsea boss’ XI…

Goalkeeper: Lampard has stuck with veteran stopper Willy Caballero after dropping Kepa Arrizabalaga and the Argentine will make play his first Champions League match for the club in this one.

Defenders: Chelsea played with a back-three in the win against Spurs and Lampard is expected to do the same once again, especially against a side as potent as Bayern. This means Andreas Christensen, Antonio Rudiger and Cesar Azpilicueta should all once again take their place from the start.

Midfielders: Jorginho and Mateo Kovacic once again impressed against Tottenham and, with N’Golo Kante still injured, will be given the main responsibility to break up Bayern’s play. To the side of the Italian and Croatian in the wing-back role will be Reece James (right) and Marcos Alonso (left), who scored against Tottenham at the weekend.

Forwards: Olivier Giroud followed his impressive showing off the bench against Manchester United with a goalscoring start against Tottenham. However, with top-scorer Tammy Abraham now fully fit again we think Lampard will opt for the England international over the Frenchman. Willian was left out of the Spurs victory and, with Mason Mount and Ross Barkley taking their chance in advanced midfield roles, the Brazilian may have to continue to settle for a place on the bench. Elsewhere, Callum Hudson-Odoi, who was the subject of a bid from Bayern Munich, is back but surely won’t be risked from the start.

Predicted XI: Caballero; Christensen, Rudiger, Azpilicueta,; Jorginho, James, Kovacic, Alonso; Mount, Barkley; Abraham.