Liam Rosenior backs Chelsea star to have ‘massive’ impact against PSG

Liam Rosenior has backed Chelsea striker Joao Pedro to have a ‘massive’ impact against PSG in the Champions League.

Chelsea travel to Paris on Wednesday night to face Champions League holders PSG in the first leg of their last-16 tie.

The Blues went three league games without a win last month, drawing with relegation-battlers Leeds United and Burnley before losing to title favourites Arsenal.

Chelsea returned to winning ways with an emphatic 4-1 victory over top-four rivals Aston Villa before overcoming a scare in Saturday’s FA Cup clash with Championship side Wrexham.

PSG stormed to their first Champions League trophy last season, thrashing Inter Milan 5-0 in the final, but have been nowhere near as impressive this term.

Luis Enrique’s side edged past Ligue 1 rivals Monaco in the last round of the Champions League and have lost two of their last four league games.

PSG are still favourites to progress at the expense of Chelsea but Rosenior will be hoping to cause an upset with the help of ‘on fire’ Pedro.

Pedro has impressed ever since his £60m move from Brighton last summer but has been particularly impressive over the past two months, scoring 11 goals in his last 12 games.

The Brazil international scored his first Chelsea hat-trick in the emphatic win at Villa Park before also getting on the scoresheet in Saturday’s FA Cup win over Wrexham.

Rosenior says he was hoping to give Pedro the night off but introduced him as a late substitute as Wrexham surprisingly took Chelsea to extra-time.

‘Joao is on fire, he’s on fire,’ Rosenior told talkSPORT after Chelsea booked their place in the quarter-finals of the FA Cup.

‘I think everybody knew when he picked up the ball and he was driving at their defence that something good was about to happen.

‘He’s in that place… I wanted to manage his minutes because he’s going to be massive for us in Paris on Wednesday.

‘But he did a really good job at helping us through this round.’

Rosenior also heaped praise on Pedro in his pre-match press conference and branded the Chelsea summer signing as ‘world-class’.

‘I think Joao’s in that category now,’ Rosenior said. ‘Consistently, during the two months that I’ve been here, he’s shown that level.

‘He’s a world-class striker. I wouldn’t swap Joao for anyone in this moment to be honest, because he’s showing all of the things and all the attributes I want to see in my No. 9.’

PSG’s recent struggles have not gone unnoticed and their former player, Eric Rabesandratana, expects Chelsea to ‘make life hard’ for the Champions League holders.

‘What PSG lack is a defensive state of mind,’ he told Capital Football. ‘They are struggling physically and if they are not at their best from that viewpoint it has a domino effect on all the rest.

‘It dents their attacking play, their rhythm and in defensive transition it becomes tough as a result.

‘On top of that, their defensive behaviour is concerning when it comes to regaining their positions, catching up with the opposition, aggressiveness… this PSG team is lacking many things.

‘Chelsea have all the qualities to make life hard for Paris Saint-Germain. There’s no doubt that it will be a tough game.

‘PSG are in survival mode right now. Matches are coming thick and fast given that PSG are not a machine it explains why the going has been so tough.

‘It’s not easy to cope with it but there’s a lot at stake against Chelsea, a team that outclassed PSG at the Club World Cup. The team has to rise to the occasion but it will be very tough.’

As Rabesandratana noted, this Champions League last-16 tie is a repeat of last summer’s Club World Cup final, which Chelsea won 3-0.

Chelsea or PSG will face either Premier League champions Liverpool or Turkish leaders Galatasaray in the Champions League quarter-finals.

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