Much was made of Real Madrid’s attacking prowess ahead of the first leg but now Chelsea need goals and it’s the prospect of facing the most on form defender in Europe that will cause the greatest concern for Frank Lampard. How do you beat Eder Militao?
He is the reason why, when Sergio Ramos left the club at the start of last season Madrid did not miss a beat defensively. Militao stepped into the boots of a club legend and won a Champions League in the process.
‘When I arrived, things didn't work out well because I had two great centre-backs in front of me,’ he said last year of the Ramos - Raphael Varane duo. ‘They had been playing together for a long time. Now I've really shown why the club signed me.’
Players who have gone up against him in Spain this season have spoken of his incredible strength and speed and it was there for all to see in the first leg when it seemed Joao Felix was about to race away and get Chelsea a vital early goal.
Militao just went up through the gears and swallowed up Chelsea’s on-loan Portuguese forward.
Asked on Monday, if he was the best centre-back in the world at the moment, Militao said: ‘Everyone has their own opinion but I think I’m on the right path. When I arrived it was difficult because of the great players that were at the club but I feel I’m playing well right now.’
The physical side of Militao’s game has always stood out ever since Real Madrid signed him from Porto in 2019. But he was error prone in limited opportunities in the first season and the club needed to be patient with him.
Arriving for 50m and given a six-year deal aged just 21-year-old the pressure was on right from the start. He had been discovered by Real Madrid’s chief scout Juni Calafat and supporters wanted to see the same impact from him as from the club’s other Brazilian imports. Calafat was behind the signing of Casemiro and of attackers Rodrygo Goes and Vinicius.
But the departure of Ramos and Varane was the making of him. He had to step up and he did. ‘I used to make more mistakes, but I think that since then I've made the most progress in terms of my concentration, which is what you need in this position and is what the team needs from me,’ he said on Monday.
In close friend and international team-mate Vinicius he has the perfect sparring partner. ‘He’s impossible to stop because he never stops running,’ says Militao of their training session duels. Keeping up with Vinicius in training keeps in the right shape to stay with the best centre-forwards in Europe.
If he has to face Erling Haaland in the next round then it will be his toughest test yet but in Spain, and so far in the Champions League, no one has given him a problem. He will need to avoid a booking tonight so as not to miss the first leg of that potential semi-final.
If Carlo Ancelotti repeats his line-up from last week then Militao will have David Alaba alongside him – that was the pair that took Real Madrid to the Champions League final last year.
Even a difficult season at Madrid in the full-back positions has not been enough to rock them. Eduardo Camavinga and Dani Carvajal look set to play either side of Militao and Alaba on Tuesday night.
They are not underestimating Chelsea. They want to win the game on the night despite the aggregate advantage. And if Militao is given problems at Stamford Bridge then Chelsea will still have to beat the man they love to hate.
‘He made some great saves in the first leg,’ said Militao of Thibaut Courtois on Monday.
He will get an unfriendly reception but it’s nothing he has not grown accustomed to in Spain, it happens whenever he faces Atletico Madrid. The Belgium keeper did his popularity among his former supporters in the Spanish capital no good last season when he said he was now on the ‘right side of history’ going into the final against Liverpool.
His performance in the final helped Madrid win their 14th European Cup and with Militao in front of him tonight the two of them will be confident of moving one step closer to a shot at trophy number 15.
Real Madrid probable: Courtois; Carvajal, Alaba, Militao, Camavinga; Modric, Kroos, Valverde; Vinicius, Benzema, Rodrygo.