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Champions League - Quarter-finals - 2nd Leg
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Real Madrid 2-3 Chelsea (Agg: 5-4 aet): Blues suffer agonising Champions League exit

By Neil JohnstonBBC Sport

Last updated on .From the section European Footballcomments2138

Real Madrid's players celebrate scoring against Chelsea in the Champions League
Real Madrid last won the Champions League in 2018

Chelsea's reign as European champions came to an agonising end despite beating Real Madrid on a night of high drama at the Bernabeu Stadium.

In a Champions League epic, Mason Mount's wonderful finish and Antonio Rudiger's powerful header wiped out Real's 3-1 first-leg advantage and brought the quarter-final tie level in Spain's capital.

Thomas Tuchel's side were outstanding throughout and Timo Werner's clever finish from an angle put them ahead for the first time on aggregate and within sight of a place in the semi-finals.

But substitute Rodrygo - after a stunning pass by Luka Modric - forced extra time with a volleyed finish before Karim Benzema, a hat-trick hero in the first leg at Stamford Bridge six days earlier, headed the decisive goal in the 96th minute to send Real through 5-4 on aggregate.

Benzema, who had earlier headed against the bar on a rollercoaster night, was unmarked when he scored to break Chelsea's hearts after Rudiger slipped inside the box.

Even after what turned out to be the clincher, Hakim Ziyech, Kai Havertz and Jorginho went close to forcing a penalty shootout.

In the end Chelsea, who played superbly, were made to pay for their first-leg performance as Tuchel's side fell just short of producing one of the great comebacks in the competition.

The players of Real Madrid and Chelsea react after the final whistle of their Champions League tie
Chelsea became just the second English team to score three goals away against Real Madrid in European competition, after Manchester United did so in a 3-3 draw in the European Cup in May 1968

Chelsea just fall short in classic

Many of Chelsea's players slumped to the ground at the end of 120 gripping minutes after pushing record 13-time winners Real - who will face Manchester City or Atletico Madrid in the last four - all the way.

Tuchel had said on the eve of this game that Chelsea's progression into the semi-finals would be akin to the best Hollywood script.

His players came close to producing a blockbuster in their first game at the Bernabeu in European competition as they showed incredible fight and belief - ingredients which were missing from their poor performance in the first leg.

This breathless game had everything and more, including a Marcos Alonso goal at 2-0 ruled out by the video assistant referee for handball.

While Tuchel will be delighted with the way his players responded, there will be concern at how much the energy-sapping 120 minutes has taken out of them.

Chelsea do not have long to recover from going out of Europe as they prepare to make a second visit of the season to Wembley.

They face Crystal Palace in an FA Cup semi-final on Sunday (16:30 BST) - a competition that offers them their last chance of landing a major domestic trophy.

Despite enjoying success in the Fifa Club World Cup and Uefa Super Cup, they lost a penalty shootout to Liverpool in the Carabao Cup final and are 12 points behind leaders Manchester City in the Premier League with just eight matches left.

We were unlucky - Tuchel after Chelsea's Champions League exit

Player of the match

MountMason Mount

with an average of 7.87

Real Madrid

  1. Squad number9Player nameBenzema
    Average rating

    7.04

  2. Squad number10Player nameModric
    Average rating

    7.00

  3. Squad number21Player nameRodrygo
    Average rating

    6.48

  4. Squad number20Player nameVinícius Júnior
    Average rating

    6.41

  5. Squad number25Player nameCamavinga
    Average rating

    6.16

  6. Squad number1Player nameCourtois
    Average rating

    5.88

  7. Squad number12Player nameMarcelo
    Average rating

    5.68

  8. Squad number15Player nameValverde
    Average rating

    5.58

  9. Squad number2Player nameCarvajal
    Average rating

    5.56

  10. Squad number14Player nameCasemiro
    Average rating

    5.53

  11. Squad number8Player nameKroos
    Average rating

    5.52

  12. Squad number17Player nameLucas Vázquez
    Average rating

    5.51

  13. Squad number4Player nameAlaba
    Average rating

    5.36

  14. Squad number19Player nameDani Ceballos
    Average rating

    5.36

  15. Squad number6Player nameNacho
    Average rating

    5.13

  16. Squad number23Player nameMendy
    Average rating

    4.95

Chelsea

  1. Squad number19Player nameMount
    Average rating

    7.87

  2. Squad number2Player nameRüdiger
    Average rating

    7.77

  3. Squad number11Player nameWerner
    Average rating

    7.74

  4. Squad number24Player nameJames
    Average rating

    7.51

  5. Squad number29Player nameHavertz
    Average rating

    7.40

  6. Squad number3Player nameAlonso
    Average rating

    7.27

  7. Squad number6Player nameThiago Silva
    Average rating

    7.18

  8. Squad number8Player nameKovacic
    Average rating

    7.18

  9. Squad number7Player nameKanté
    Average rating

    6.92

  10. Squad number12Player nameLoftus-Cheek
    Average rating

    6.77

  11. Squad number16Player nameMendy
    Average rating

    6.61

  12. Squad number22Player nameZiyech
    Average rating

    5.33

  13. Squad number5Player nameJorginho
    Average rating

    5.18

  14. Squad number10Player namePulisic
    Average rating

    4.95

  15. Squad number17Player nameSaúl
    Average rating

    4.48

Line-ups

Real Madrid

Formation 4-3-3

  • 1Courtois
  • 2CarvajalBooked at 118mins
  • 6NachoSubstituted forVázquezat 88'minutes
  • 4Alaba
  • 23MendySubstituted forMarceloat 78'minutes
  • 10Modric
  • 14CasemiroSubstituted forRodrygoat 78'minutes
  • 8KroosSubstituted forCamavingaat 73'minutesBooked at 90mins
  • 15ValverdeBooked at 68mins
  • 9BenzemaBooked at 37mins
  • 20Vinícius JúniorSubstituted forCeballosat 115'minutes

Substitutes

  • 11Asensio
  • 12Marcelo
  • 13Lunin
  • 16Jovic
  • 17Vázquez
  • 18Bale
  • 19Ceballos
  • 21Rodrygo
  • 24Mariano
  • 25Camavinga
  • 40Fuidias
  • 41Marín Zamora

Chelsea

Formation 3-4-1-2

  • 16Mendy
  • 24JamesBooked at 10mins
  • 6Thiago Silva
  • 2Rüdiger
  • 12Loftus-CheekSubstituted forSaúlat 105'minutes
  • 7KantéSubstituted forZiyechat 99'minutesBooked at 102mins
  • 8KovacicSubstituted forJorginhoat 105'minutes
  • 3Alonso
  • 19Mount
  • 29HavertzBooked at 109mins
  • 11WernerSubstituted forPulisicat 83'minutes

Substitutes

  • 1Arrizabalaga
  • 4Christensen
  • 5Jorginho
  • 10Pulisic
  • 13Bettinelli
  • 14Chalobah
  • 17Saúl
  • 22Ziyech
  • 28Azpilicueta
  • 31Sarr
  • 68Vale
Referee:
Szymon Marciniak
Attendance:
59,839

Match Stats

Home TeamReal MadridAway TeamChelsea
Possession
Home43%
Away57%
Shots
Home10
Away28
Shots on Target
Home4
Away7
Corners
Home1
Away10
Fouls
Home17
Away20

Live Text

  1. Post update

    Match ends, Real Madrid 2, Chelsea 3.

  2. Post update

    Second Half Extra Time ends, Real Madrid 2, Chelsea 3.

  3. Post update

    Attempt blocked. Reece James (Chelsea) right footed shot from outside the box is blocked.

  4. Post update

    Foul by Christian Pulisic (Chelsea).

  5. Post update

    Dani Ceballos (Real Madrid) wins a free kick in the attacking half.

  6. Post update

    Attempt missed. Jorginho (Chelsea) left footed shot from the centre of the box is close, but misses to the right. Assisted by Hakim Ziyech following a corner.

  7. Post update

    Attempt missed. Hakim Ziyech (Chelsea) left footed shot from outside the box misses to the right following a corner.

  8. Post update

    Corner, Chelsea. Conceded by David Alaba.

  9. Booking

    Daniel Carvajal (Real Madrid) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.

  10. Post update

    Hakim Ziyech (Chelsea) wins a free kick in the attacking half.

  11. Post update

    Foul by Daniel Carvajal (Real Madrid).

  12. Post update

    Attempt missed. Kai Havertz (Chelsea) header from the centre of the box is close, but misses the top right corner. Assisted by Reece James with a cross.

  13. Post update

    Attempt blocked. Jorginho (Chelsea) right footed shot from the centre of the box is blocked.

  14. Post update

    Corner, Chelsea. Conceded by Lucas Vázquez.

  15. Substitution

    Substitution, Real Madrid. Dani Ceballos replaces Vinícius Júnior.

  16. Post update

    Attempt saved. Hakim Ziyech (Chelsea) left footed shot from the left side of the box is saved in the bottom left corner. Assisted by Mason Mount.

  17. Booking

    César Azpilicueta (Chelsea) is shown the yellow card.

  18. Post update

    Antonio Rüdiger (Chelsea) wins a free kick in the defensive half.

  19. Post update

    Foul by Rodrygo (Real Madrid).

  20. Booking

    Kai Havertz (Chelsea) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.

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2138 comments

  • Comment posted by Lets Agree To Disagree, at 22:36 12 Apr

    Chelsea, you gave it your best shot, when many thought that tonight would be a walkover win for RM, and for awhile it looked like you would make it though. Sadly, not to be. You have nothing to be ashamed of.

  • Comment posted by bubbadoo, at 22:36 12 Apr

    Damage was done 1st leg

  • Comment posted by __, at 22:42 12 Apr

    All people do is bad mouth other clubs on here. This is a place for football discussion about the match not trash talk thread...

    • Reply posted by ABU Hamster, at 22:49 12 Apr

      ABU Hamster replied:
      I presume this is your first time using the Internet?

  • Comment posted by chanasnakepit, at 22:37 12 Apr

    What a match! Quality! Unlucky for Chelsea. Dominated majority of the match. But Benzema is the man right now! What an assist by modric though!!

  • Comment posted by MI, at 22:44 12 Apr

    Wow that's gotta hurt. Going away to Madrid and scoring 3 yet losing, but Chelsea can walk away with their head held high. That was one hell of an effort.
    From a Liverpool fan.

    • Reply posted by Mojo68, at 22:48 12 Apr

      Mojo68 replied:
      Better than your snoozefest at the weekend.

  • Comment posted by The Spin Doctor, at 22:35 12 Apr

    If only Chelsea hadn't given Benzema his third goal on a silver platter in the 1st leg.

  • Comment posted by Googly, at 22:43 12 Apr

    I don’t support either team. But football needs to get a grip.

    It has got to the point where players try to cheat and deceive, as naturally as breathing, in every action they take - from diving to claiming every single throw-in they know is not theirs.

    And then feigning injury. Madrid in the last 20 minutes were an utter disgrace.

    • Reply posted by FreeSpeech, at 00:36 13 Apr

      FreeSpeech replied:
      The lying, cheating and deceiving are ruining the sport. Some of them dive better than Tom Daley and fully deserve Will Smith's Oscar.

  • Comment posted by Simples, at 22:49 12 Apr

    Hard lines Chelsea. Left it all out there. Alonso effort ruled out, fantastic save by Courtois to keep it 3-0. Fine margins. But the play acting. Vinicius throws himself down with the slightest contact from James. He hauls down Loftus-Cheek and pretends it was shoulder to shoulder. Then the usual stuff from Casemiro, likes to dish it out then rolls around as though he's been shot.

    • Reply posted by Greg W, at 23:07 12 Apr

      Greg W replied:
      And then you lost

  • Comment posted by NB22, at 22:40 12 Apr

    Great game for the neutral.
    I'd hate to be a fan of either of these team today, you'd have no nails left.

    Credit to Chelsea they gave it their all, came down to a Stevie G slip from Rudigar to settle it in the end.
    Madrid probably thought they just had to turn up after the first leg.

    37 year old Modric with one of the best passes I've ever seen.

    Benzema again deadly.

  • Comment posted by Paul M, at 22:42 12 Apr

    When was the last time a team had 28 shots against Real Madrid at the Bernabeu ? Great performance from Chelsea ...just wasn't your day today...

    • Reply posted by Sport Report, at 22:58 12 Apr

      Sport Report replied:
      22 days ago

  • Comment posted by Jacubsuk, at 22:48 12 Apr

    LFC Fan here. Chelsea deserve lots of credit for the way they played. They were the much better team overall and played like European Champions. Very unlucky not to progress.

    • Reply posted by thejusticedivine, at 01:04 13 Apr

      thejusticedivine replied:
      crying like babes, hope meeting your LFC in the final to beat it again. you need guts and heart sth you lack of

  • Comment posted by SpenLFC, at 22:42 12 Apr

    No fan of Chelski by any stretch of the imagination but I thought they were unlucky tonight. Great game to watch, end to end, drama right up to the final whistle 👏🏻👏🏻

  • Comment posted by Geordie Dave, at 22:37 12 Apr

    Gutted for Chelsea. Why on earth did he put Pulisic on?! He was garbage and lost the game for Chelsea.

    • Reply posted by Julio Laker, at 22:43 12 Apr

      Julio Laker replied:
      He had two great chances ... both of which he squandered.

  • Comment posted by Uberti, at 23:01 12 Apr

    What a game....as a Spurs fan, putting rivalries aside, I have to say well done to Chelsea, you were magnificent, gave it your all & that's all anyone could ask for, the best team lost on the night....

    • Reply posted by Lab escapee from Wuhan, at 00:07 13 Apr

      Lab escapee from Wuhan replied:
      Well said, from a saints fan.

  • Comment posted by LUFC1986, at 22:37 12 Apr

    Madrid very lucky. But why did he take off werner, best player.

    • Reply posted by Leslie Thornton, at 22:39 12 Apr

      Leslie Thornton replied:
      Werner is useless. Have you not seen Chelsea over the last 2 years?

  • Comment posted by McGaz, at 22:36 12 Apr

    Not a Chelsea fan and I'd prefer to play another European team further in the comp... but the number of dives and rolling around on the floor is embarrassing!

    • Reply posted by chelseadad, at 22:42 12 Apr

      chelseadad replied:
      2 mind injury time and RM spent 10 of the last 15 on the floor

  • Comment posted by Richard, at 22:44 12 Apr

    So proud of my Chelsea, a win away to Madrid, but sadly a loss overall. We came so close, so very close to turning around what was almost impossible. Besides that, what a game overall, with 2 Titan's clashing & no matter who you support it was a fantastic game & advert for the CL as well. All I can do now is wish the remaining English teams well & hope 1 wins it, as unlike some I am not a hater.

    • Reply posted by Sport Report, at 22:58 12 Apr

      Sport Report replied:
      Not a hater but you seem to have an apparent dislike for certain teams simply because they aren't English. Hmmm

  • Comment posted by fame, at 22:36 12 Apr

    Good game

    • Reply posted by Bolt, at 22:38 12 Apr

      Bolt replied:
      Hell of a game!

  • Comment posted by Paul, at 22:37 12 Apr

    Two great games of football tonight. Chelsea really showed me something and definitely created enough chances to have won.

    • Reply posted by The Spin Doctor, at 22:48 12 Apr