Chelsea have it all to do to keep their hopes of retaining their Champions League crown alive after losing the first leg of their quarter-final against Real Madrid. The Blues were deservedly beaten 3-1 at Stamford Bridge and now must win in Madrid in a weeks’ time to stay in the competition.
Karim Benzema opened the scoring with a sublime header from 15 yards out and beat Edouard Mendy for a second time with another memorable headed effort on 24 minutes.
Kai Havertz, whose goal clinched the trophy for Chelsea last season, headed Thomas Tuchel’s side back into the tie. But a horrendous error from Mendy allowed Benzema to seal his hat-trick to deal a hammer blow to Chelsea’s chances.
Express Sport looks at five things we learned from an exhilarating tie in London.
READ MORE: Tuchel responds to Man Utd approach after ‘contact made’
Brilliant Benzema shows his class
Like a fine wine, Karim Benzema is growing better with age. At 34, the French striker has never looked in better shape and his brace at Stamford Bridge will go down in history as one of the finest in recent Champions League memory.
His neat exchange with Vinicius allowed him to gallop away from Thiago Silva but at some 15 yards out, he still had a lot to do. He showed his experience and clinical finishing with a wonderful header, guiding it into the top corner. Edouard Mendy simply never had a chance.
His second might have been even better. Luka Modric curled a first-time cross into the box and his clever movement allowed him to gain half a yard on Silva. Somehow while back-pedalling, he managed to steer his header into the far corner. His pressing forced Mendy into a poor error, but from 40 yards out, he still finished calmly with the goal at his mercy.
It has taken him some time to become Real’s star man after Cristiano Ronaldo and Gareth Bale’s star-studded arrivals in Madrid. But there is no disputing he is now the main attraction in Madrid — and on a wet night in west London, he conquered Stamford Bridge as the away fans serenaded their new king.
DON’T MISS
Chelsea flop Werner floated to Juventus and AC Milan by agent
Man Utd told to snub Tuchel appointment due to Romelu Lukaku
Chelsea boss Tuchel admits he doesn’t agree with Christensen decision
Havertz the man for the big occasion
When Chelsea needed a moment of magic from one of their front three, Kai Havertz bravely stood up and delivered. He may be slender in build with a timid personality, but his character is anything but.
From the early moments of the game, Madrid knew they would have their hands full with the 22-year-old. Eder Militao has rarely had a such a difficult evening, with Havertz hassling him in the defensive third, and it nearly cost the Brazilian when he was booked for hauling down the striker after being caught in possession.
He was the brightest and most obvious threat as Chelsea searched for a way back in the game at 2-0 down and, when Jorginho delivered a super cross to the back post, Havertz didn’t even flinch as he met the ball with his head — despite Dani Carvajal’s stray boot nearly catching him in the face.
That goal sparked a potential comeback and gave the hosts belief. It is difficult to imagine a moment of that kind coming from Romelu Lukaku, the £97.5m striker who started on the bench, with Havertz once again proving to be the big man for the occasion.
Defensive horror show continues
Real Madrid knew what it would take to beat Chelsea after watching Brentford execute their gameplan superbly with a stunning 4-1 victory on Saturday. And Los Blancos showed they had done their homework with almost a carbon copy of the Bees’ performance.
Carlo Ancelotti’s side began the game in the same manner as they had against Paris Saint-Germain in the previous round, trying to stay tight and compact in their own defensive third. Like Brentford, they picked their moments on the counter and made Chelsea pay. Even a change of personnel didn’t help. Andreas Christensen, benched on Saturday, looked uncomfortable up against Vinicius and was hooked at the break.
Tuchel cut a frustrated figure on the touchline as his side continued to make defensive mistakes, and his anger would have increased ten-fold after a shocking mistake from Mendy and Antonio Rudiger. And ahead of the second leg in Madrid next week, the German tactician must find a solution to stop the rot — or the holders face bowing out of the competition.
Lukaku confidence at all-time low
The moment came in the second half when Tuchel could no longer ignore his record signing and sent on Romelu Lukaku, despite their frosty relationship since the striker revealed his desire to return to Inter Milan.
With Chelsea 3-1 down and searching for a way back into the tie, the Belgian was summoned from the bench as his manager threw caution to the wind. Within five minutes of coming on, the 28-year-old had a half chance and a golden one, somehow glancing wide with acres of space in the box.
Glenn Hoddle had suggested Lukaku was not working hard enough to warrant a start in Chelsea’s starting XI and added that his problems were self-inflicted. But perhaps the striker is lacking in confidence in addition to fitness. His finish was not representative of a player of his talents or price tag – and Tuchel needs to find a way to get him clicking before he becomes another victim of Chelsea’s striker curse.
Blues fail to heed Vinicius warning
Chelsea would have needed no reminders about the danger posed by Vinicius Junior after scoring 18 goals in all competitions this season, but BT Sport pundit Joe Cole warned his former club that they couldn’t allow the winger any space to run.
“Vinicius is a danger for Real Madrid. If I was Thomas Tuchel, I think that’s one of the reasons why he’s gone back to a back three. The link-up between Benzema and Vinicius is great, you cannot let Vinicius run at you, you may have to double up.”
It didn’t take long for the 22-year-old to send his first warning after being found by Fede Valverde, striking against the crossbar inside the box. For the first Benzema goal, he left Christensen in his wake and supplied a brilliant cross as he continued to taunt the Dane at will with his blistering pace.
For all the latest Sports News Click Here
For the latest news and updates, follow us on Google News.
