Real Madrid beats Chelsea but all will be decided in London
Real Madrid defeated Chelsea (2-0) on Wednesday in the first leg of the Champions League quarter-final at the Santiago Bernabeu, a match that fulfilled the favoritism of the Spanish team over the English team, with goals from Benzema and Asensio. Carlo Ancelotti’s team was far superior to Frank Lampard’s side, despite some inaccuracies in the first half and lacking some bite to seal the tie. The Whites, after losing at home to Villarreal, resumed the fight for the fifteenth place with the full conviction that Chelsea, in a very low period, should not be an impediment to advance.
Chelsea got off to a good start
Not even the smell of freshly fallen rain gave the English team some shelter at the Bernabeu. They were just blanks, like the bullets of a Chelsea team with very little faith in their chances of doing something worthwhile at the home of the 14-time European champions. And the ‘blue’ team had two very clear chances right at the start, without having to look for them. Madrid almost went too far, in their opponents’ half from minute one, and in two losses they gave the visitors two counterattacks. Joao Félix wasted them both, the first with a one-on-one option against Courtois but without speed and without hitting Militao. Ancelotti’s team was not fine in defense, with several losses, but up front they could smell blood just by pressing the accelerator.
Benzema put the 1-0 on the scoreboard
Benzema was the one who opened the scoring after 20 minutes, in his line after the World Cup as one of the best in Europe (20 goals and 5 assists a la Haaland and Rashford). Without making as much noise as when he hogged the spotlight in La Liga and Champions League for his Ballon d’Or, the Frenchman continued his streak after a shot from Vinicius, from Carvajal’s cross, which left Kepa ‘dead’ in the area. The 1-0 fell of its own weight, although from chanting Benzema’s name, the Bernabéu linked with Courtois’ as the Belgian drew friendly fire from Militao. The white box locked up the blue for many minutes and stole up top, an unbearable feeling of overwhelm for Chelsea, with Thiago Silva taking one out of ‘Vini’ under the sticks.
Real Madrid won with precision
Lampard’s team looked for the rival’s back and some more carelessness from a Madrid team that gained precision as the minutes went by, although the rival’s attitude invited to sentence the tie after the break. The script called for an extra gear to the white team but in the restart it was difficult to give lucidity to their attack, with long shots from Modric and Camavinga, without passing through Benzema.
Swarm and Chilwell
The visiting Koulibaly’s injury gave way to Cucurella as a central defender, a decision that cost the English coach dearly, as the Spanish player neglected his back and Chilwell was red carded when he tackled Rodrygo. Lampard did not hesitate to go back to a five-man defense and Madrid had to deal with the now total obligation to get a good income ahead of the second leg in London next Tuesday. Once again, Chelsea had to wait a long time. Vinicius, the top assist man in the Champions League, played Asensio’s tackle to perfection: he looked for him once and Cucurella cut out a shot on goal.
Asensio scores the final 2-0
The second, then, did find the Balearic player with his left foot waiting to beat a not very accurate Kepa (2-0). With 15 minutes to go, Asensio himself had the clearest chance with Benzema, leaving Chelsea with some life in the game, and even at the end they had a chance with Mount if not for Rüdiger. With three managers this season, eleventh in the Premiership, the Londoners have a small burning nail to cling to, although it already burned them in 2021 and 2022.
The opinions of the technicians
Carlo Ancelotti, was «happy for the advantage» his team achieved with the win but asked to «manage it well» and «repeat this match» at Stamford Bridge. «We played a complete match, suffered at the beginning. The goal was to take advantage and we took it, but we have to suffer, Chelsea is a very good team. We have to fight for another 90 minutes. For his part, Chelsea coach Frank Lampard acknowledged a lack of «confidence» at times in his team and highlighted the fight to stay with one less for the last half hour against Real Madrid, although he regretted conceding 2-0 in a slip-up, ahead of a Champions League quarter-final second leg that «will be different» next week at Stamford Bridge. «It was a bit complicated, Madrid have a lot of quality, but it’s open for next week. It was a mixture of sensations. Eleven against eleven we were in the game and then they didn’t create many chances for us while we were with 10. I’m proud of the team even though there are many things that can be done better.»
