Chelsea capitalized on their Premier League win over the weekend with a 2-1 Aggregate win over Borussia Dortmund to get a spot in the UEFA Champions League Quarter Finals as Benfica thrashed Club Bruges 7-1 in the other fixture on Tuesday night.
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Raheem Sterling and Kai Havertz were both on target for Chelsea as Graham Potter’s side overturned a one-goal deficit from the first leg.
The Match kick-off time at Stamford Bridge was delayed 10 minutes to the kick-off due to traffic around Stamford Bridge
A sublime strike from Raheem Sterling and a retaken penalty by Kai Havertz set the stage for The Blues and minimized pressure on Chelsea Head Coach Graham Potter.
Potter on Kai Havertz retaking the penalty:
“I thought about taking it the second time but I was so confident in Kai to put it in the back of the net.”
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Chelsea forward Raheem Sterling on BT Sport:
“It was a massive performance. We had to dig deep. We took our chances. We felt as a team we could do it.
“I had a little mis-kick with the first touch but it landed perfectly and allowed us to build on that for our performance.”
Chelsea’s 53rd-minute winning goal was a result of Marius Wolf getting penalized for handball.
Chelsea defended so well and thanks to the man in between the posts Kepa as he made crucial saves and a clean sheet.
Chelsea missed Thiago Silva and Mason Mount due to injury and suspension respectively with Fofana, Koulibaly, and Cucurella stepping up.
Dortmund who needed just a draw to qualify did their best but the home team was way good with Jude Bellingham at his best and a massive and world-class performance from him.
Borussia Dortmund manager Edin Terzic on BT Sport:
“Fair play to Chelsea and congratulations.
“Both games were very close for both teams but, at the end of the day, they deserved it.”
On the penalty being awarded: “I’m responsible for the performance of our team. I don’t want to talk about the referee. I thought it was a tight call and a tight decision.
“I think the first 10 minutes you can feel the power not just from Chelsea but from the stadium.
“After that, we came back into the game but they managed to score and we didn’t.
“We had a clear chance through Bellingham and only had a couple of counter-attacks to defend.
“We didn’t create much later and that’s the problem.”
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On Julian Brandt going off injured:
“We adapted well and Gio [Reyna] came in to take over the position. We have enough quality in the team. We don’t want to compete with Chelsea in the transfer market; we want to do it on the pitch.”
The Blues are now back to winning ways after a 1-0 win against Leeds on Saturday in the Premier League and now they have a cutting edge in front of goal having only scored twice in their previous seven games before the Dortmund game.
Chelsea’s path to the last eight calls for special moments for Potter as he left Brighton to take over at Chelsea, succeeding Champions League winner Thomas Tuchel.
Chelsea boss Graham Potter Feeling:
“I’m not sure! There is a lot of emotion in the end. It was tense in the end but the boys played fantastic. I am delighted for them to get the win and great for everyone here.”
“Not a massive amount to be honest. I knew they had encroached. It was him or Reece. Sometimes they have to feel it on the pitch. Obviously we have confidence in Kai. I wasn’t watching it but delighted when I heard the roar.
“Taking penalties is not for me, so I am in awe of anybody [who does].
“There was a fantastic feeling in the dressing room. We have been through a tough period and this competition means a lot for us. We wanted to progress and get into the last eight and it sets us up for the next few weeks.
“We have to recover and prepare for Saturday when we play Leicester. It is great for the boys, two clean sheets after a tough period. You get that in life and it is about how you respond and the players have been fantastic.
“It was important we put pressure on them and get the crowd with us. It is not easy to do because they are a top team playing with confidence.
“Credit to the players they gave everything and over the two games I thought we deserved to go through.”
Chelsea goalscorer Kai Havertz on BT Sport:
“I don’t know what I was thinking [when it hit the post] but the referee let me retake the penalty. I was a bit nervous but I scored. I tried to wait and look at the keeper and the second one was a bit easier.
“The last two weeks were hard; we lost a lot of games.
“Tonight was important this is a big tournament and it’s the last trophy that we can win.
“We showed character and that we want to keep going.”
Benfica to the Last 8
Benfica silenced Club Brugge to secure their place in the Champions League quarter-finals as Goncalo Ramos scored twice for Benfica making it a 7-1 aggregate.
Ramos then showed his skills to make it 4-0 on aggregate. However, Joao Mario’s penalty and David Neres’ finish wrapped up the win before Bjorn Meijer scored a stunning consolation.
The win makes it Benfica’s second successive season to reach the Champions League quarter-finals and have never progressed further and were eliminated by Liverpool at that stage in the last campaign.
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Wednesday 8th, March Champions League –Play-Offs
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