Champions League: Chelsea’s Tuchel hoping to harness newfound ‘belief & self-confidence’ in pivotal Real Madrid semifinal decider

Chelsea coach Thomas Tuchel is aiming to qualify for his second Champions League final in succession when his side take an away goal into Wednesday's crucial semifinal second leg against Zinedine Zidane's visiting Real Madrid.

Former Paris Saint-German manager Tuchel has been credited with reversing Chelsea's fortunes after progress stalled in the final weeks of Frank Lampard's reign, and the German has brought the West London club to the verge of their third final in the competition after securing an impressive 1-1 away draw in last week's first leg.

Tuchel's influence over the club has been pronounced. The defense, so porous for much of Lampard's tenure, has emerged as one of the most stingy in European football, while he has also produced evidence that he is capable of pulling big money signing Timo Werner and Kai Havertz from the hibernative state both have been in for much of their Chelsea career since moving from the German Bundesliga last summer.

Chelsea's slender advantage came courtesy of a superb Christian Pulisic solo goal and while Karim Benzema equalized for the hosts, Tuchel knows that if his side can keep a clean sheet against the 13-time European champions he will join Roberto Di Matteo and Avram Grant on the very short list of managers to have guided Chelsea to European football's showpiece fixture.

"The challenge will be to keep the intensity going throughout the whole match," Tuchel said during Tuesday's pre-match press conference.

"The pressure’s on. It’s the second leg, the decisive one, so to arrive with a certain level of belief and self-confidence is absolutely necessary. Otherwise we have no chance against a team like Real Madrid.

"It does not help so much if your coach is talking about it. We need to really feel it. If I talk about it, it’s only because I’m sure they feel it and we can see it in the games – that the team are able to produce performances. They are aware of the challenge."

Tuchel added that the key for a positive Chelsea performance is to treat the game as if it were any other: disregard the away goal advantage and use the pressure as motivation to produce a performance worthy of qualifying for a European final.

"The club demands that we win any game, no matter who’s on the other side of the pitch,” said Tuchel. "This is what sharpens the mentality and this is our big strength: that we arrive as a team that is used to this pressure. This is a good pressure because if you make things too big then it helps nobody and devalues your performance in any other game."

A natural urge for many in such a situation would be to shut up shop and park the bus in front of their goal, but Tuchel says a performance seeking consolidation rather than thrust is the surest way to come up short in such a high-stakes fixture.

"This club is about winning," he said. "This game is about winning, this competition is about winning. Forget the first-leg result; it’s not as important as everyone thinks. It’s got zero importance in preparation for this match. We will demand from them to be as strong as possible from tomorrow from 8pm. The group has one goal: to overcome Real Madrid."

Another narrative simmering in advance of the game is the return of Eden Hazard to Stamford Bridge. The Belgian has endured a torrid time with injuries since leaving Chelsea for the La Liga side two summers ago but is thought to be in line for selection in what will be a homecoming he hopes will dash the dreams of the fans who once sang his name from the stands.

"Everyone at this club only has good things to say about Eden," Chelsea defender Andreas Christensen added. "He is probably going to be a big factor again. I think he has always been a player that brings a lot of happiness on the pitch. If he has that, you will see his quality as well."

A fit Hazard will likely have a substantive influence on Wednesday evening's proceedings but with Real Madrid knowing that they need to score at least once, that may provide enough opportunities for Tuchel and Chelsea to add to their advantage.