Real Madrid secured a 2-0 victory over Chelsea in the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final tie at the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium on Tuesday. Karim Benzema opened the scoring with a superb overhead kick in the 28th minute, and Marco Asensio added a second goal with a neat finish in the 36th minute. Chelsea had their chances to score, but they were unable to convert them. Real Madrid dominated the midfield and created more opportunities, recording eight shots on target, the joint-most that Chelsea have faced in the first half of a UEFA Champions League match (The Telegraph).
Chelsea were missing their star player Mason Mount, who was suspended for the match after picking up too many yellow cards. This gave an advantage to Real Madrid, who were without their captain Sergio Ramos due to injury. Manager Zinedine Zidane deployed Casemiro, Toni Kroos, and Luka Modric in a three-man midfield, which proved to be the right decision as they controlled the game from the start.
Real Madrid’s goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois made several important saves to prevent Chelsea from scoring. The former Chelsea player was tested by his old club but proved to be too difficult to beat. Courtois has kept four clean sheets in his last six Champions League games and will be a key player for Real Madrid in the second leg (AS USA).
Chelsea’s manager Thomas Tuchel was disappointed with his team’s performance and said that they gave away two easy goals. He also admitted that it would be difficult to come back from a 2-0 deficit but said that anything is possible in football (Evening Standard). Tuchel is known for his tactical expertise and will need to come up with a plan to outsmart Zidane in the second leg.
The second leg of the quarter-final tie between Real Madrid and Chelsea will take place on Wednesday 4th May at Stamford Bridge, Chelsea’s home ground. Real Madrid will take a 2-0 advantage into the game, but Chelsea will have the home advantage and the opportunity to turn the tie around. The winner of the tie will face either Liverpool or Paris Saint-Germain in the semi-finals of the Champions League (Daily Mail).
