Frank Lampard during his time at Chelsea. (GETTY Images)
Talking in the pre-match conference on Monday (h/t Metro), Frank Lampard said that Atletico Madrid are the toughest possible team that Chelsea could have drawn in the UEFA Champions League Round of 16.
Chelsea qualified for the Champions League knockout stages after winning Group E without losing a single game.
Chelsea were pitted against Atletico Madrid in the Round of 16 draw that took place in Switzerland on Monday.
Diego Simeone’s side have lost just one game in the league all season, letting in just 4 goals in 11 games. They also dumped Liverpool out of the competition in the round of 16 after an impressive performance.
Lampard heaped the praise on Atletico Madrid and said that he was aware of the quality they possess. Citing Atletico’s win against Liverpool, he said Atletico are one of the toughest draws possible.
“I think most people will say it’s the toughest draw we could’ve had when you go on current form.”
The English manager then went on to say that beating teams like Atletico Madrid is imperative if you are to win such a trophy.
“We’re going to have to try to beat these sort of teams if we want to win the Champions League.”
Chelsea were impressive in the group stages, where they were up against another Spanish side in Sevilla.
The Blues went unbeaten in the group stage and went on to thrash Sevilla in Spain by a 4-0 scoreline. However, Atletico would surely be a tougher test.
Chelsea and Atletico Madrid were pitted together in the same group in the 2017/18 Champions League season.
The Blues beat Atletico away and drew at home to qualify at the expense of the La Liga team that season.
The Champions League Round of 16 is scheduled to be played in mid-February next year.
As for the other English teams, Liverpool will face RB Leipzig and Manchester City will go up against Borussia Monchengladbach.
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