The latest encounter between Real Madrid and Chelsea in the Champions League will put the spotlight on their coaches.

Chelsea will travel for Wednesday’s quarter final first leg in Madrid with Frank Lampard trying to win for the first time since being named interim coach.

Real will play still surrounded by doubts about Carlo Ancelotti’s future amid rumours of him taking over Brazil’s national team.

The outcome could potentially help Lampard reclaim a permanent job with the English club, or influence Ancelotti’s decision on whether to accept the Brazil job.

Ancelotti backed his former player Lampard to do well as manager of his former side and ruled himself out of a return to the Premier League club.

Ancelotti had guided Chelsea to the Premier League and FA Cup double in 2009-10.

Chelsea have dropped to 11th in the Premier League after a run of poor results, and have also been knocked out of the FA Cup and League Cup, despite spending almost £300 million ($373 million) on new players in January.

The Champions League is the English club’s last chance for silverware this season.

“I feel sad (looking at Chelsea’s position in the table). I have a fantastic memoryof this club, of the peoplethat are still working there. I’m a supporter of Chelsea, because I spent two years there,” Ancelotti told reporters on Monday.

“Will I go back (as coach)? No, I think Lampard will be able to do a fantastic job with them... Lampard has been a great player who I coached for two years.

“He knows these kind of games well and how to prepare his team. He has been here for a week, but he will do well in the time he is at Chelsea.”

Despite Chelsea’s poor run of form, Ancelotti urged his side to be wary of the English club, who have faced Real in the knockout stages of the last two Champions League seasons and beaten them twice in four games.

“We suffered a lot last year,” the Italian manager said.

“We have to respect the team and the club, theyhave very good players and even if they are not in a good moment they have great motivation and will bring out the best. It’s a squad of a very high level.

“The team is excited and motivated to return to the Champions League and experience another magical night at the Bernabeu. We have to take advantage of the fact that we play the first game at home.”

Real Madrid’s 4-0 thrashing of Barcelona in the Copa del Rey semi-finals last week have sent a warning bell to all across the continent.

The familiar attacking outburst to sink their rivals convinces one that Karim Benzema and Vinicius Junior are poised to give Real another of those famous European nights.

A year ago in the quarters, the French striker bulged the net four times over two legs. Vinicius was a sight of terror for Chelsea as he assisted two of Benzema’s goals. The duo perform better when the pressure is on them. They are the kind of players that the big teams need.

Ancelotti will have nearly all of his players availablefor the first leg, with the exception of left back Ferland Mendy.

Mason Mount and N’Golo Kante didn’t play in Chelsea’s last game in the Premier League but returned to training on Monday and should be available for the trip to the Spanish capital.

Osimhen doubtful

Napoli faces the prospect of going into one of their biggest-ever matches without star player Victor Osimhen.

Osimhen has missed the last two matches for Napoli after injuring the adductor muscle in his left leg while on international duty with Nigeria.

The club hoped the forward would be fit for the first leg of the quarter finals against AC Milan at the San Siro on Wednesday but that is looking increasingly unlikely.

Osimhen has not trained with the team since returning to Naples last month and Italian media reports said Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis told concerned fans at the weekend that Osimhen would not be fit in time for the match.

“Victor is not in a position to play, unfortunately,” De Laurentiis was quoted as saying. “We hope to have him back for the return fixture” on April 18.

Osimhen is the top scorer in the Italian league this season and his 21 goals have played a crucial role in Napoli’s seemingly unstoppable march to a first Serie A title since Diego Maradona led the club to its only two Italian league championships in 1987 and 1990.

Napoli have a 16-point lead at the top of the table with the team also featuring dribbling wizard Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and influential midfielder Stanislav Lobotka.

Osimhen has netted four times in the Champions League this season, including three goals in the victory over Eintracht Frankfurt in the round of 16. That saw Napoli reach the Champions League quarter finals for the first time in their history.

In Osimhen’s absence, Napoli was routed 4-0 by Milan in the league but bounced back to win 2-1 at Lecce on Friday.

“In soccer you sometimes go through the doldrums but you have to be able to dig deep when it matters,” Napoli coach Luciano Spalletti said after the win. “We’ve gained a lot of confidence from successfully navigating this tricky away match.” Spalletti faces a difficult decision on whether to risk his star forward.

Napoli is a different team with Osimhen and the opposition defence knows he can cause problems at any time, but a relapse could rule the forward out for the rest of the season.

Lead extended, but win eludes Barcelona

Barcelona: Barcelona extended their lead at the top of La Liga to 13 points despite being held to a goalless draw by mid-table Girona in their Catalan Derby at Camp Nou on Monday.

Barca came closest to scoring but Ronald Araujo’s shot in the first half did not completely cross the goalline before Girona goalkeeper Paulo Gazzaniga clawed it clear in what was a largely uninspiring performance from the home side.

They moved up to 72 points from 28 games, 13 ahead of second-placed Real Madrid with 10 rounds remaining, while Girona are eight points clear of the relegation zone in 11th place.

Barcelona coach Xavi was hoping for a reaction from his side following their 4-0 loss to Real Madrid in the Copa del Rey semi-final last week, but they struggled to break down a resolute Girona defence that had only kept one other La PityLiga clean sheet all season.

“It was a very tough game, Girona played really well. We did well in the high press, but again we could not score,” Xavi told reporters.

“It is a pity because we wanted to move 15 points clear of Real Madrid, but this is football. I think you have to value a lot the position we are in (at the top of La Liga).

“The responsibility to score is on all the team. We played a good game, we were just missing the goal. We tried everything but it was not possible today (Monday).”

Gazzaniga also had to clear the ball off his goalline after teammate Santiago Bueno played a stray back passthat would have nestled in the bottom corner, while Barca winger Raphinha fired wide when well placed at the back post.

Home defender Eric Garcia headed over from a free kick when he should have scored.

Reuters