Chelsea will travel to Germany to face Schalke 04 in the Match Day 3 of the UEFA Champions League, where the Blues would be looking for a back-to-back victory in this competition.
The Blues have been handed a more-or-less relatively easy group to deal with. But, they made their job slightly difficult after losing out the opening game against FC Basel at Stamford Bridge. Jose Mourinho’s side bounced back in their last European game with a convincing 4-0 victory over Steaua Bucharest.
Schalke have had a stuttering start to their league campaign and are lying fifth in the table. However, they’re leading the Group E of the Champions League and thereby this game holds an extra importance from Chelsea’s point of view.
Chelsea will be having their own game plans, but one player they must take special care of – Julian Draxler. The 20-year-old is a transfer target of Arsenal, though English media have at times linked him with Premier League heavy weights Chelsea and Manchester United as well.
Draxler is one of the most highly rated youngsters in entire Europe. He is an attacking midfielder, who operates either from left or centre and is one of the most consistent performers in the inconsistent Schalke side. With two goals and 1 assist already in this competition, he is the one who can cause Chelsea some problems at the back.
Draxler’s main strength is his pace, positioning and eye for key passes. Although he starts from left, he is not a conventional winger nor an inverted winger. He is agile and possess an uncanny knack of changing positions so swiftly that it becomes really difficult for defenders to mark him. Although he is a very good dribbler, we don’t often see him dribbling unnecessarily. Rather, he is most effective in and around the box, where he simply dribbles past one or two defenders and delivers good crosses in for the forwards.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F9Pg3r8jXrs
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