Champions League
2026-01-21 - Chelsea vs Pafos
A Sports Betting Pick by Auls
Football: UEFA Champions League Match Day 7
Wednesday 21st January 2025 - Kick Off 8pm
This game is live on TV
Chelsea
Liam Rosenior would have been pleased to oversee a first Premier League win as manager of Chelsea, but he will also be well aware that the performance was not quite where it should have been in the 2-0 victory over Brentford. The previous manager had ensured Chelsea had made it through in the Cup competitions and that means Rosenior is having to manage squad minutes and needing to use all of those available to negotiate a busy month.
The Champions League resumes with two more Group matches to be completed and Chelsea are still fighting to earn a top eight spot and a place immediately into the Last 16. The Blues are 13th in the Champions League standings, but they still have an opportunity and have to conclude the League Phase at Stamford Bridge by improving the 3-0-0 record here.
Chelsea had failed to win any of the previous 5 games in all competitions, but have now won 2 of the first 3 under the new manager. The 2-0 win over Brentford also snapped a run of 3 straight games at Stamford Bridge without a win, during which time Chelsea had lost twice.
The squad will be utilised for this fixture as Chelsea continue to move through a very busy portion of the schedule.
Pafos
Merely making the Champions League Group Stage has to be considered a massive achievement from Pafos, but they are in a position to extend the run even further. Finishing in the top twenty-four in the Champions League standings is the aim and Pafos have put up enough of a fight through the opening six games in the League Phase to still be full of confidence.
With 6 points on the board, Pafos are in 26th place in the Champions League standings and likely need at least one victory from the remaining two fixtures to be played. That looks unlikely to be secured in West London when considering Pafos have a 0-2-1 away record in the Champions League having failed to score in those fixtures.
Pafos had won 5 of the previous 7 games in all competitions, but were beaten this past weekend. They have just hit a buffer away from home and Pafos have lost 3 of the last 4 on their travels in all competitions, including consecutive away defeats in the Cypriot top flight.
David Luiz was hoping to be able to play against one of his former clubs, but the Brazilian is set to miss out with an injury.
Head to Head
This is the first meeting between the clubs at competitive level.
Prediction
There is a big talent edge between Chelsea and Pafos, even if the English Premier League club make changes.
Injuries have piled up in the Pafos team at a bad time and there may be some focus on the last Champions League game as their best opportunity to find a result to move into the top twenty-four in the standings.
However, Pafos have shown some resiliency in the Champions League, even as they bridge the gap to better teams, and that is something they will have to display on Wednesday night. The weather conditions may also help, but Pafos have not scored an away goal in the Champions League Group Stage and that is going to be the issue for the Cypriot Champions.
Liam Rosenior has to manage a squad that is dealing with injuries and knocks, but he has plenty of options.
The manager is going to want to stamp his authority not only on the squad, but to show the supporters and media that he deserves to be respected. We have seen little of that from the fans after an underwhelming appointment, at least in their eyes, but Rosenior has made a positive start to life in the dugout at Stamford Bridge and he can help The Blues move closer to the top eight in this Champions League Group with a victory and a clean sheet.
The Statistics :
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The Pick :
Chelsea 3-0 Pafos
