Can Chelsea win the Champion League this season?

The knockout stages of the 2014 Champions League will begin over the next few weeks, and Chelsea will take on Turkish side Galatasaray in the round of 16. The Blues won Group E by taking 12 of an available 18 points from Schalke 04, FC Basel and Steaua Bucuresti while recording a +9 goal differential.
Chelsea won the Champions League during the 2011-12 season, and they are hoping to reclaim their place atop Europe’s elite. However, the vast majority of the big clubs in Europe made it into the final 16, meaning the road to the finals will be extremely difficult.
If we take Jose Murinho’s view on Chelsea as league winners, he always said that Chelsea cannot - and will not - be champions in May. To test this statement we take help of some statistics. Statistics has helped to crack this public mask of Jose Murinho which proves that his team is the clear favorite for the title.
Not once in the 21-season Premier League era has a team outside the top two going into March emerged to win the title - regardless of games played. And only on six occasions have the team in second overhauled their rivals at the summit. Narrow it down to the last decade and you will find eight of the leaders on March 1 were still there at the season’s end. So statistics seem to be on Chelsea’s side.
Now talking about the challenges in future, Chelsea has the squad to achieve their goals. They are in strong form, having majority of their last 9 games. Their defensive work has been outstanding, and they continue to be able to create enough offense in Jose Mourinho’s disciplined system to get wins. Mourinho’s tactical abilities have been one of the biggest reason Chelsea has enjoyed so much success recently.
Moreover, Chelsea’s best striker Torres seems to have gained the momentum again after the injury. If he can continue to lead the line in the way he has in Europe over the last few months, Chelsea have themselves a regular, reliable goal threat - and with one of those, you’ve always got a reasonable chance of winning trophies. Also John terry, the center back of Chelsea, a player which every team must have to support its goal scoring abilities looks more solid and dependable than ever. It was no surprise to see him regularly reinstated into the Blues’ starting XI when Mourinho returned, and his performances have been exemplary. Another of Mourinho’s favorites, Frank Lampard, also possesses experience in abundance and has enjoyed regular football so far this season even at 35.

When the ball is in their possession, Chelsea have a talented group of midfielders that can create opportunities or finish them on their own. The striker position remains a concern for Chelsea, but Fernando Torres just returned to form and Samuel Eto’o has done a solid job this season. In all, the pieces are in place for Chelsea to have Champions League success.