Dinamo Zagreb vs Chelsea Match Analysis and Prediction

4 years ago 780

Chelsea will kick off the 2022-23 Champions League campaign when they make a trip to Craotia to take on Dinamo Zagreb.

While Thomas Tuchel’s side secured their spot in this group stages through the Premier League, the hosts came through three qualifying rounds to book their place among European football’s elite.

Saturday’s controversial 2-1 victory over West Ham United has left Chelsea one point above Liverpool and just four points behind a Manchester City side who are supposed to conquer all this season.

The Blues have now conceded nine goals in five matches, and Tuchel needs to decide whether he is going to operate with a back three or four over the coming weeks, with the Blues having taken 10 points from six matches.

In attack, Tuchel’s side have generally failed to show a clinical touch, with the German left to hope that Kai Havertz’s first goal of the season is the end of his ineffective showings in the final third.

Meanwhile, Dinamo Zagreb are considered underdogs of the gruop, potentially because they have had to progress past Shkupi, Ludogorets Razgrad and Bodo/Glimt to reach the group stages for the first time since 2019-20.

However, this is a club that reached the 2020-21 Europa League quarter-finals and recorded wins over West Ham United and Sevilla in last year’s tournament.

22 points and 27 goals have also come from their opening eight league matches, and Ante Cacic and his side will fancy the chance to pull off the upset against Premier League opposition.

However, Chelsea will be encouraged by their hosts failing to keep a clean sheet in their last 10 games, dating back to December’s defeat at Stadion Maksimir. These two clubs will be meeting for the first time in their histroy with the Blues having never faced Croatian opposition in a competitive game.

Dinamo Zagreb vs Chelsea head to head

The two teams have not previously met in any competition and this will be their first meeting in the group stages of the Champions League.

Dinamo Zagreb latest home form

Dinamo Zagreb have recently been on a good run of form at home, as they have won each of their six most recent matches. They managed to defeat Rijeka 3-1 in their last home game in the league. In their last five matches, they have scored 20 goals and conceded seven.

Dinamo Zagreb 4-2 Ludogorets 09/08/22

Dinamo Zagreb 4-1 Hajduk Split 13/08/22

Dinamo Zagreb 5-2 Osijek 20/08/22

Dinamo Zagreb (E)4-1 Bodo/Glimt 24/08/22

Dinamo Zagreb 3-1 Rijeka 02/09/22

Dinamo Zagreb latest away form

Dinamo Zagreb have recently been on a relatively good run of form on the road, having lost just one of their five most recent matches. They defeated Sibenik 2-1 in their last away game in the league. In their last five matches, they have scored six goals and conceded four.

Shkupi 0-1 Dinamo Zagreb 26/07/22

Ludogorets 1-2 Dinamo Zagreb 02/08/22

Varazdin 1-1 Dinamo Zagreb 05/08/22

Bodo/Glimt 1-0 Dinamo Zagreb 16/08/22

Sibenik 1-2 Dinamo Zagreb 28/08/22

Chelsea latest home form

Chelsea have recently been on a good run of form at home, having been unbeaten in their six most recent matches. They managed to defeat West Ham United 2-1 in their last home game in the league. In their last five matches, they have scored 10 goals and conceded six.

Chelsea 2-1 Watford 22/05/22

Chelsea 2-1 America 17/07/22

Chelsea 2-2 Tottenham Hotspur 14/08/22

Chelsea 2-1 Leicester 27/08/22

Chelsea 2-1 West Ham United 03/09/22

Chelsea latest away form

Chelsea have recently failed to keep a good run of form on the road, having won just two of their six most recent matches. They lost 2-1 to Southampton in their last away game in the league. In their last five matches, they have scored five goals and conceded 10.

Arsenal 4-0 Chelsea 24/07/22

Udinese 1-3 Chelsea 29/07/22

Everton 0-1 Chelsea 06/08/22

Leeds United 3-0 Chelsea 21/08/22

Southampton 2-1 Chelsea 30/08/22

Dinamo Zagreb news

Cacic is likely to revert back to the side which started against Bodo/Glimt, eventually defeating them by a 4-1 scoreline after extra time.

Mislav Orsic has again been the standout player for the hosts this season, already chipping in with eight goals in Croatia’s top flight and the Champions League qualifying rounds.

Chelsea news

Tuchel may decide to bring Edouard Mendy out of the spotlight, handing a first start of the season to second-choice goalkeeper Kepa Arrizebalaga.

Ben Chilwell has put himself in line to feature ahead of Marc Cucurella, with Mason Mount and Havertz also in line for recalls after their substitute outings against West Ham.

Prediction and Odds

Given the threat that Dinamo Zagreb possess going forward, we do not expect Chelsea to keep a clean sheet on Tuesday given their substandard level of their defending.

However, the Blues should have far too much quality in attack, leading us to predict a relatively comfortable win for the away side.

Odds: 1 2.32 X 2.05 2 2.15