UCL: Chelsea advised to be ‘cautious’ after easy draw vs Lille

Former England international Joe Cole has sent a message of advice to UCL champions Chelsea after they were paired against French Ligue 1 club Lille in the round of 16.

Although the first draw of the round of 16 was marred by controversy, Chelsea, however, ended up getting Lille as they avoided the likes of Real Madrid, Bayern Munich and Ajax, who could have been more of a challenge for them in their UCL race.

But Cole, who played for both clubs during his playing career, warned Thomas Tuchel’s men that they can’t discount the Ligue 1 side.

“Chelsea will be very happy, but I’ll put a word of caution on that,” Cole told BT Sport.

“Lille are a very exciting, strong and very aggressive team and they will have nothing to lose. Chelsea are the champions, the hunted.

“Where Lille play, it could be a hell of an atmosphere. It’s going to be a tough one.

“I know they (Chelsea) are probably breathing a sigh of relief to avoid Bayern and Real Madrid, but you can’t discount this Lille team.”