Chelsea 0-2 Real Madrid: Blues exit Champions League
Real Madrid advances to the Champions League semifinals to face Manchester City or Bayern Munich after beating Chelsea 2-0 in the second leg, 4-0 on aggregate.
Rodrygo scored the opening goal with a simple tap-in, celebrating with a Ronaldo-esque jump and spin. The 22-year-old forward scored his second goal even easier when he was set up by Federico Valverde. The 4-0 aggregate win sees Real eliminate Chelsea from the Champions League quarterfinals for the second straight year. Their opponent in the semifinals is likely to be Manchester City – who led Bayern by three goals after the first leg.
Real also had a difficult time at Stamford Bridge in the first half and early second half. Chelsea created many good chances but failed to convert, even conceding a goal due to a defensive error.
The first half was played at a high intensity, with Real initially trying to keep the ball but being pressed quickly by their opponents. In a counter-attacking situation, the hosts created their first dangerous chance with N’Golo Kante’s left-footed volley hitting the post. After that, the away team relinquished possession and played on the counter-attack.
Chelsea gradually had more possession, but Real still posed a threat with their young Brazilian stars on the flanks, Vinicius Junior and Rodrygo. In the 20th minute, Rodrygo received the ball inside the box on the right, took a touch and hit a powerful shot that hit the far post and bounced out.
The most dangerous situation of the first half belonged to Chelsea in the first minute of stoppage time when Reece James crossed from the right to the far post for Marc Cucurella. The left-back controlled the ball in front of the goal with only Courtois to beat, a distance of just over 5m, but his shot was saved by the goalkeeper’s hand. Real players ran to hug Courtois when he made an unbelievable save.
Chelsea continued to attack in the second half and created another clear chance in the 52nd minute. Midfielder Conor Gallagher headed the ball to Kante, who took a one-touch shot from a distance of less than 5m, but the ball hit the hip of center-back Eder Militao and went out.
Wasting their chances, Chelsea paid the price six minutes later. Rodrygo broke quickly past Trevoh Chalobah on the right and then passed to Vinicius at the far post. Vinicius did not shoot but passed it back to Rodrygo, who easily tapped the ball into the net.
The Brazilian duo continued to inspire Real to their second goal at Stamford Bridge in the 80th minute. Starting from a long pass, Vinicius received the ball on the left and passed it to Federico Valverde. The Uruguayan midfielder pushed the ball down to face the goalkeeper before passing it across for Rodrygo to score from close range. This was Rodrygo’s 15th goal in 37 Champions League matches, surpassing the record of Brazilian legend Ronaldo.
Chelsea was eliminated, leaving only Manchester City in the Champions League for England. The London-based team is at risk of not qualifying for the European Cup next season as they are currently in 11th place in the Premier League.
Keep following us at Chelsea FC Players to read more interesting news today!
