Shamoon Hafez
BBC Sport

Chelsea defender Kalidou Koulibaly believes interim boss Frank Lampard is the right man to guide the club out of a "difficult situation".

Lampard, 44, has returned as manager until the end of the season, having replaced the sacked Graham Potter.

The Blues are 11th in the Premier League and face holders Real Madrid in the Champions League quarter-finals, with the first leg on Wednesday.

But Koulibaly said they are aiming to "reach something big this year".

Lampard is Chelsea's all-time leading scorer and won three league titles and the 2012 Champions League during his 13 years as a player, before he managed them from 2019-2021.

And Senegal captain Koulibaly, 31, told BBC Sport: "We know he is a legend here and he has already trained half of the team.

"The situation is like this for the moment, but in training he has been saying he will support us until the end and help us to be out of this situation.

"We know it is a difficult situation for everybody, including the club, manager and supporters, but we will give everything to get out of this and make them happy.

"Our first objective is to win the games and make our supporters happy."

Read more here.

Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti has dismissed rumours that he could return to former club Chelsea and says he expects Frank Lampard to do a "fantastic job".

The Los Blancos boss was speaking in his pre-match news conference before his sides quarter-final tie against Chelsea on Wednesday.

When asked whether he would consider going back to help his former team, he joked: "Again?"

The Italian managed the Blues for two season between 2009 and 2011 and won the Premier League and FA Cup double in his first season in charge.

The west London side have struggled this season, sitting 11th in the table having sacked two managers whilst under the new ownership lead by Todd Boehly.

Ancelotti said he is "sad" about the current situation at his former club and added: "I have a fantastic memory of this club, of the people that are still working there.

"I am a supporter of Chelsea of course, because I spent two really nice years there."

However, he did confirm he would not be returning to manage the club, but gave his full support to former player and now interim head coach Frank Lampard.

"I think Lampard [should stay]. I hope Lampard is able to do a fantastic job there."

Will Faulks, Talk Chelsea, external

Chelsea have just 10 games left to play this season, assuming they are knocked out by Real Madrid in the Champions League quarter finals, as most people expect.

The fact that this cursed campaign is already so close to an end makes the decision to sack Graham Potter at this stage harder to understand. What can Frank Lampard really achieve in this period, with the very same players?

It seems the owners are trying to stem the bleeding by appointing a club favourite to get the fans in the stadium back on side, while making very public their pursuit of a wide range of high-profile targets to take over in the summer in order to appease those who demand someone with a winning pedigree.

It also seems to be a gamble on the quality of the players in the squad - they underperformed so badly for whatever reason under Potter that any change in atmosphere and any little lift in confidence is likely to make more of a difference than the former Brighton coach was going to have with a few weeks more on the training pitch.

In both regards it's a gamble that plays on the emotional side of the sport - a risky move under any circumstances.

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Image source, Getty Images

Enzo Fernandez said Chelsea are "not afraid" of 14-time Champions League winners and will head into Wednesday's quarter-final first leg with no pressure.

The World Cup winner added that Chelsea won't let their poor season and recent managerial change affect them against Carlo Ancelotti's side, who sit second in La Liga.

He said: "Obviously within the season changing coach is not easy, but we're mentally prepared to play tomorrow.

"We're not afraid. There is respect because this is a football match and we know the quality they have. We will try to have great defensive work and make a wonderful match.

"I try not to have pressure in football, just to enjoy it. There is responsibility in this match but there is no pressure, I always try to enjoy. You don't have to be afraid and lets hope tomorrow is a big show."

Frank Lampard said Fernandez can emerge as a great leader for Chelsea over the years, but the midfielder doesn't believe he has reached his full potential at the club yet.

He said: "I always aim to be a leader because when I started my roots in football I wanted to be an example and to help my colleagues. To be defined like that so young makes me happy and I would like to thank Frank for his words.

"I don't think I've got to my top level at Chelsea, I've not been there long and it it is a different league, different city. It's not easy but I'm trying to support my colleagues to do as best as possible."

Chris Sutton
Former Blackburn striker on BBC Radio 5 Live

Chelsea have underachieved this season. They have been similar to the team Madrid knocked out in the previous round, Liverpool.

I still can't work out what has been going on.

I don't think there is a great deal of pressure on the team but I think there is a lot of pressure on Frank Lampard because he wants the job next season.

Real Madrid head coach Carlo Ancelotti says he is "sad" about Chelsea's form this season as he prepares to face his former side.

As already mentioned, Ancelotti won the Premier League and FA Cup with the Blues in the 2009-10 season.

"I am sad, yes," said Ancelotti. "I have a fantastic memory of this club, of the people that are still working there.

"I'm a supporter of Chelsea, of course, because I spent two really nice years there."

Chelsea boss Lampard was a player under Ancelotti during his two years in charge at Stamford Bridge, and the 63-year-old Italian is confident Lampard can turn the club's fortunes around.

However, Ancelotti - whose Real side won last year's Champions League and are looking to lift the trophy for the sixth time in 10 seasons - has ruled out a second stint at Chelsea himself.

"I hope that Lampard is able to do a fantastic job with them," he said. "He has 20 years' less experience [than me], but that will not change what will happen in the game.

"He was a fantastic player, extraordinary, he knows very well what can happen in these games but experience, in these matches, I don't think counts for much.

"He arrived at the club a week ago, with a lot of players that he already knew. I think he'll do well in the time that he's at Chelsea."

Image source, BBC Sport

Chelsea are the club covered in the latest Football News Show on BBC iPlayer, with the question "do Chelsea have a plan" asked.

Ben Croucher is joined by former Blues striker Chris Sutton and The Athletic’s Liam Twomey to discuss how Chelsea can learn from the lessons of this season and they discuss the current managerial situation.

Ben also speaks to US sports business reporter Kurt Badenhausen about Todd Boehly’s running of the club.

Badenhausen argues that Boehly’s aggressive approach has been “interesting” but you can’t judge his ownership on 11 months and need to give him time to bed into the role.

Watch The Football News Show on BBC iPlayer.

This is only the fourth all-Italian Champions League tie. The other three have all been won by AC Milan.

Milan beat Inter in the semi-finals and Juventus in the final in 2002-03 - and Inter again in the 2004-05 quarter-finals.

Daniele Verri, Italian football journalist

Image source, .

Today's AC Milan are the result of a project built on the ruins Silvio Berlusconi and Chinese businessman Yonghong Li left behind.

The latter bought the club off Berlusconi in April 2017, only to hand it over 448 days later to American hedge fund Elliott after defaulting on a payment.

Red Bird Capital took over from Elliott last summer and have continued the style and strategy put in place.

It has been based on a few solid pillars: the identity given by Paolo Maldini's return; the recruitment of promising youngsters like Rafael Leao, Mike Maignan, Pierre Kalulu and Malick Thiaw; and the winning mentality instilled by experienced players such as Olivier Giroud and Zlatan Ibrahimovic.

Two seasons ago, the Rossoneri ended a seven-year drought by qualifying for the Champions League, and then won their first Italian league title in 11 years in 2022.

Milan are attractive to sponsors and very active on the business side of things - they have stakes in fashion, music and show business.

It is a shared project at all levels, based on an attack-minded manager in Stefano Pioli and the strict respect of Uefa's economical parameters. Lacking the money other clubs could spend, the Rossoneri based their resurrection on ideas and attractive football.

Read about the state of Italian football here.

Former Chelsea striker Chris Sutton has been talking to The Football News Show about whether managing the Blues is an appealing job now.

Peter: Head says Real .... heart says Chelsea ... c'mon Frank ... show 'em!!

Paul: Wish Chelsea well but I can only see a Real Madrid win. This is a chelsea team that couldn’t even beat wolves and have scored less goals than both leeds and Leicester. Even if they could shut real out who’s going score? It’s still a big problem for them.

Simon Gleave
Head of sports analysis, Nielsen Gracenote

Chelsea (EuroClub Index ranked 12th), external travel to Real Madrid (3rd) with 27% chance of a place in the semi-finals. It will be crucial to avoid defeat this evening if that chance is to be improved.In the other match, the all-Italian quarter-final between AC Milan (ranked 19th in Europe) and Napoli (9th), Napoli have a 65% chance of reaching the last four.

Manchester City's impressive 3-0 win against the Euro Club Index's number two team Bayern Munich last night has made City even stronger favourites to win this season's Champions League. We estimate that City have a 47% chance of lifting the trophy in June although this will reduce if Real Madrid are confirmed as City's semi-final opposition.

Former Chelsea striker Chris Sutton tells The Football News Show that his old side can shock Real Madrid tonight.

Image source, .

Napoli will certainly miss star striker Victor Osimhen tonight but luckily breakthrough sensation Khvicha Kvaratskhelia is fit.

Nine months ago the average football fan would never have even heard his name, with all Kvaratskhelia's football being played in the Georgian and Russian leagues plus two Europa Conference League appearances.

The 22-year-old Georgia winger has scored 14 goals - behind only Osimhen - and assisted another 14 - more than anybody else - for Napoli this season.

In Europe's top five leagues, Paris St-Germain duo Lionel Messi and Neymar, Eintracht Frankfurt's Randal Kolo Muani and Arsenal forward Bukayo Saka are the only other players to have double figures for both goals and assists.

In the Champions League nobody has more than Kvaratskhelia's four assists.

More from Chelsea boss Frank Lampard: "The Premier League is one of the greatest challenges in world football, and those challenges have obviously taken us to a place we don't want to be as Chelsea.

"I think the Champions League sometimes offers you a bit of escapism from that - a different speed of game, knockout football, those things can all contribute to getting different success in the same season.

"There's pressure on both teams due to the size of both clubs. Are Real Madrid favourites? Yes. [But] there's no better carrot in football than trying to prove people wrong.

"I think that's a nice challenge for us. I'm not worried about that, in terms of pressure. Football at this level is pressure and if you can't handle it, you're not a big club or big player."

Napoli are on the brink of winning a first Serie A title since 1990, sitting 16 points clear at the top with nine games to go.

They have never the league without Diego Maradona in the team.

There is a real party vibe in Naples right now and our colleague Alex Bysouth went out to experience it. Read his thoughts here.

Chelsea caretaker manager Frank Lampard says it is a "huge honour" to lead the club into the Champions League quarter-finals - less than a week after taking on the role.

The 44-year-old said the "amazing" opportunity to manage in Europe again had played a "big part" in his return to Chelsea, two years after his first managerial spell at the club ended.

"I've been fortunate enough to manage in the Champions League for two seasons," said Lampard.

"As a player, it was always the special competition, so to be here as a manager - particularly when a week ago today I didn't know I'd be here - is a huge honour, and a big part of my thought process of taking on the challenge here.

"It's an amazing challenge for me personally as well as obviously for us as a team and a club. I'm really looking forward to the occasion myself."