Ryan Roberts

👀 Very interesting. Madrid assistant Davide Anceltotti (Carlo’s son) has said Madrid will dabble in the dark arts tonight. He’s hoping to make the 2nd leg easier by getting Chelsea players booked; who are 1 card away from suspension. Those players are: 👉 Kepa Arrizabalaga 👉 Reece James 👉 Enzo Fernandez 👉 Thiago Silva 👉 Conor Gallagher 👉 Kalidou Koulibaly 👉 Mykhailo Mudryk There’s a couple of ways to look at this… If the idea is to bait these players in, they may be good options to look at for fouls. There’s also the fact that their opposing numbers may go in harder or bend the rules themselves, resulting in fouls/cards for Madrid players too. None of their players face a suspension by being booked. Now I wouldn’t bother with a few - Gallagher may be worth a look if he comes on, but he won’t start. Mudryk will also likely not start and frankly, wouldn’t be a big miss if he does get suspended. Kepa is in charge of his own fate. If he’s going to get himself booked, that’ll really be down to him. I wouldn’t be too interested in Thiago Silva either. He’s so experienced, I really think it would be a struggle to catch him out deliberately. So, it’s about key battles. Here’s the highlights: 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 Reece James vs Vinicius 🇧🇷 James is strong, powerful and assertive. Only Havertz and Sterling can top his average for fouls in the CL. He averages 1.93/90, a heavy increase from his 1.05 average domestically. He’s 1.22 for 1+ foul, 2.1 for 2+. Vinicius draws a ridiculous number of fouls from his opponents. He’s been fouled 2.35 times/90 in the CL, domestically he’s fouled a ridiculous 4.03 times/90. Now this is also an interesting match up because Vini has a real nasty side. He’s been carded 8 times in La Liga this season, the most of any Madrid player. I’ve no doubt he’ll give Reece James a few kicks, to try and encourage the Englishman to retaliate. Vini averages 1.43 fouls/90 in La Liga, 0.59/90 on the Champions League. He’s 1.17 for 1+ fouls, 1.83 for 2+ and 4.0 to receive a card. I really like ‘to score or be carded’ at 2.0. 🇦🇷 Enzo Fernandez vs Luka Modric 🇭🇷 Fernandez has been feast or famine when it comes to fouls, but he’s been an aggressor in Europe. He averages 1.50 fouls/90 in the CL, just below double his average (0.76) in the PL. Not only does Modric posses that sharpness that could draw a foul, he’s also experienced and streetwise. It goes both ways though. Modric commits a few fouls - 1.19/90 domestically, 0.43/90 in Europe. Fernandez does draw a few. 1.50/90 in the league is a pretty solid average. Modric: 1+ foul is 1.25, 2+ is 2.30. Fernandez: 1+ foul is 1.40, 2+ is 3.00. 🇸🇳 Koulibaly vs Benzema 🇫🇷 Koulibaly can be so rash. He’s a nightmare for bombing out of position and taking out a striker who’s dropped deep, I can already see that scenario playing out with an experienced Benzema latching on to him. Koulibaly averages 1.11 fouls/90 domestically, in the CL he’s averaged 1.40 fouls/90. This is one where I can really see Madrid targeting the Chelsea man. Koulibaly: 1.30 for 1+ foul, 2.50 for 2+. Just thought I’d share this info after reading what Ancelotti had said. Don’t just go throwing every player in to a bet for 2 fouls or a booking, that’s just stupid. But, a couple of picks may be a worthwhile addition to your bet builder.