Real Madrid took control of their Champions League quarterfinal tie against 10-man Chelsea with a 2-0 first-leg victory at Estadio Santiago Bernabeu on Wednesday.
The Blues began brightly with Joao Felix missing an excellent early chance before Real began to assert themselves. Karim Benzema broke the deadlock with his 90th Champions League goal on 21 minutes as Carlo Ancelotti’s side penned Chelsea back in their own half for long periods.
Ben Chilwell was shown a straight red card on 59 minutes after pulling back Rodrygo as he bore down on goal, heaping further pressure on the Blues to keep the hosts at bay.
Substitute Marco Asensio doubled Real’s advantage 16 minutes from time with a low drive, and Benzema missed a good chance late on to kill the tie, which instead just about remains alive ahead of next Tuesday’s second leg at Stamford Bridge.
There was initially a bright opening 15 minutes during which Chelsea appeared a major threat on the counterattack, but as is the story of their season, the Blues failed to make their best spell of the game count.
Once Benzema put Real in front and Raheem Sterling missed the chance to hit back immediately, it was essentially a case of how many the home side would score.
By half-time, Real had recorded eight shots on target: the joint-most that Chelsea have faced in the first half of a Champions League game since such records began in 2003. By full-time, Chelsea had faced 10 shots on target, their most in a match in the competition since November 2012 against Juventus (13).
Chilwell’s red card palpably restricted Chelsea’s ability to compete, but the self-belief visibly drained away from these players, underlining the fragility that contributed to Graham Potter’s departure 10 days ago as head coach.
In the other Champions League encounter, AC Milan took a step towards their first semifinal appearance in 16 years as Ismael Bennacer’s goal earned them a 1-0 win over Napoli in the quarterfinal first leg at the San Siro.
Although Napoli dominated most of the first half, the hosts took the lead five minutes before the interval when Brahim Diaz teed up Bennacer who struck a low shot inside the far post.
(ESPN)
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