Chelsea's hopes of navigating through the Champions League round of 16 may take a slight hit due to a little-known UEFA rule.
According to Daily Mail, the Blues may be unable to play the home leg of their last-16 tie at Stamford Bridge.
Little-known rule to cost Chelsea?
As reported by Daily Mail, Chelsea may be forced to give up the home leg of their first knockout tie of the Champions League campaign, instead playing the fixture at a neutral venue.
Liam Rosenior's side booked their place in the final 16 of the competition, avoiding a playoff tie, as they beat Napoli 3-2 on Wednesday to seal a sixth-placed finish.
They could yet have to play one leg of the upcoming tie at a neutral ground, though, due to UEFA regulations only allowing for one game to be played in a city on any given night.
Indeed, the Blues' sixth-placed finish was not enough to see them above city rivals Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur, who are therefore set to take priority for their home legs, due to take place on Tuesday 17 March and Wednesday 18 March after the conclusion of the playoff-round ties.
UEFA's rule is in place to ensure matches can be adequately policed without stretching security too thin over one area.
Is there still hope for a home game at Stamford Bridge?
UEFA regulations state that teams cannot play in the same stadium, city or in cities within 30 miles on a matchday.
The current standing for knockout games is: “The national association and clubs are required in advance to identify and announce an alternative stadium where a match can be played in the given match week.”
“In such a case, the team with the lower ranking in the league phase must play in the alternative venue.”
“Exceptionally however, in such a case, a team qualified to play the second leg of these rounds may decide, by informing the UEFA administration before the draw, to reverse the tie and play the first leg at home instead of playing the second leg in an alternative venue.”
Chelsea do, therefore, have the option to request to reverse their round-of-16 tie, hosting their opponents first and going on to play the away leg while Arsenal and Tottenham are at home.
Alternatively, the Blues could seek to play their home leg on a Thursday, outside of the usual Tuesday and Wednesday Champions League gamedays.
It may be likely, however, that Chelsea seek special UEFA dispensation to discard the rule and host their home leg alongside either Arsenal or Tottenham, given the regularity of many teams playing at home in London throughout the season. With policing of those occasions not posing a major issue for Metropolitan Police.
FGG says: Chelsea should overcome concerns
While the UEFA regulations may cause some worry for the Blues, they should be able to get round these concerns, given Metropolitan Police's ability to control weekend matchdays every week including many London clubs.
If special dispensation is not received, Rosenior's side may have to settle for an away second leg in their bid to reach the Champions League quarter-finals, but at this stage a neutral venue seems unlikely.