League quarterfinals và ease the mounting pressure on head coach Graham Potter. Needing béo overturn a 1-0 deficit from the first leg in Germany three weeks ago, Chelsea made a fast start but had mập wait until Raheem Sterling ‘ s 43 rd – minute strike phệ break the deadlock .Kai Havertz sealed a 2-1 aggregate thắng by converting a 53 rd – minute penalty at the second attempt. The spot kick was awarded after referee Danny Makkelle was sent bự the màn hình by VAR official Pol Van Boekel bự Reviews a handball by Marius Wolf. Havertz’s first effort struck the post, but VAR revealed encroachment into the box by multiple Dortmund players, and Havertz slotted home page the retake .Christian Pulisic made his first appearance for Chelsea since Jan. 5 as a late substitute, và Chelsea dữ on phệ a precious victory that sees them reach the last eight of Europe’s premier club competition for the second consecutive season .
Chelsea may have beaten Leeds United by a solitary unanswered goal last weekend, but Potter was still under significant pressure ahead of Tuesday’s clash with Borussia Dortmund .The sheer scale of recent investment poured into the club by ownership — around £ 600 m all told — demands a better immediate return than the Blues have managed of late. An early Champions League exit would have strengthened Potter’s critics in arguing the job might be too big for the 47 – year-old béo handle .
– Stream on ESPN+: LaLiga, Bundesliga & more (U.S.)
– Read on ESPN+: Ranking Prem teams’ top-four chancesPotter was noticeably more animated in this match on the touchline, regularly trying mập rally the crowd và reacting Khủng refereeing decisions with more vigour than normal .Perhaps the most telling moment came when Havertz stepped up phệ try và chuyển đổi his 53 rd – minute penalty at the second attempt. Potter sat in his seat & couldn’t watch. It may have been rough going at times, but this must surely rank as Potter’s best night in charge since succeeding Thomas Tuchel in September .The prospect of a Champions League quarterfinal next month will give Potter a tangible achievement phệ point béo if the domestic stutters continue. But he will be hoping back-to-back wins for the first giây phút since October will prove bự be a long-awaited turning point .The lack of goals has been Chelsea ‘ s biggest problem under Potter. It threatened mập be another hugely frustrating evening as they created & then spurned a series of chances repeatedly, including when Havertz cơn sốt the post, or when had the ball in the net with a brilliant finish only for the offside flag bự be raised .But this phút giây, Chelsea were rewarded for their perseverance .Raheem Sterling had endured a torrid first half, but he stuck béo his task & fired the home page side in front two minutes before the break. Havertz needed two tries but converted his second spot kick after hitting the post with the first as several Dortmund players encroached in the penalty area .Remarkably, this was the first phút giây since Dec. 27 that Chelsea had scored more than once in a game. It was precisely what they needed mập bởi béo qualify, but encouraging performances from Joao Felix & Havertz in particular should help Chelsea banish what had surely, at least in part, become a psychological issue in front of goal .Dortmund were already without injured key attacking players Karim Adeyemi & Youssoufa Moukoko, và goalkeeper Gregor Kobel when their preparations were further disrupted by a late arrival béo Stamford Bridge, forcing kick-off béo be delayed by 10 minutes .To make matters worse, Julian Brandt was forced off injured inside the first five minutes, & so sánh the task of holding on phệ their first-leg advantage grew tougher almost by the minute .On such occasions, teams need their big players Khủng step up, & although Jude Bellingham is just 19 years old, he has captained the side previously và is a vital player in Dortmund’s attack. Unfortunately for BVB, this was not his finest night .Bellingham was not phệ blame for Dortmund’s exit, but equally the midfielder was unable lớn influence the game lớn the same extent that has seen his proposed transfer fees skyrocket ahead of a likely summer move bự either the Premier League or LaLiga .He missed a glorious chance bự pull Dortmund cấp độ on aggregate just before the hour mark as Sebastien Haller ‘ s shot cơn sốt Ben Chilwell và fell béo him 7 yards out. Remarkably, Bellingham side-footed it wide .A glittering career surely awaits such a prodigiously gifted player, but this was a night béo forget .Linked play intelligently, had a brilliant effort ruled out for offside và took advantage of a second chance bự score from the spot bự seal a priceless victory .Won the midfield battle for Chelsea & phối the tone for a largely authoritative collective display .A regular threat xuống dốc the left flank & made a vital interception on the stroke of half-time .Missed a great chance on the hour mark & was not at his influential best .Struggled béo impose himself, completing just 60 % of his passes và managing only one shot .Lost six of his 10 duels & gave the ball away too often .It wasn’t the prettiest sequence, but Raheem Sterling put Chelsea on the board in the 43 rd minute nonetheless .The ball fell tantalisingly bự Sterling’s feet, & he took a swing at it only lớn miss, but he managed Khủng kết nối with the follow-up .After a ball from Chelsea’s Ben Chilwell cơn bão the arm of Dortmund’s Marius Wolf, a đoạn phim Review ensued và the referee pointed Khủng the spot .Kai Havertz stepped up và missed, but due Khủng encroachment in the box, the referee ordered it lớn be retaken, and Havertz didn’t make the same mistake twice, putting Chelsea up 2-0 for the match, & up 2-1 on aggregate .Although Chelsea were the better side on the night, it’s not as if Borussia Dortmund didn’t have their chances .Within five minutes of Havertz’s goal, Bellingham had a chance phệ pull one back for BVB but put it barely wide .
– As it happened: ESPN’s UCL live blog replay
After the match: What the managers and players said
Chelsea manager Graham Potter on how he is 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.”
Potter on the result after a rough stretch: “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.”
BVB manager Edin Terzic on the result: “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.”
BVB midfielder Jude Bellingham on the penalty call, and then the penalty kick retake: “It is a yard or two away. I am not too sure. I don’t want to get in trouble. That in itself was disappointing, but the fact they had a retake is a joke. For every penalty with such a slow run up there is going to be encroachment by people running into the box by a yard or so, but that’s the game. They’ve made the decision and we’ve had to live with it.”
Key stats (provided by ESPN Stats & Information research)
- Chelsea have reached the UEFA Champions League quarterfinals for the 12 th giây phút, tying Juventus for fifth most all thời gian .
- Dortmund see their 10 – game winning streak snapped in all competitions, as they suffer their first loss since before the World Cup ( Nov. 11 ) .
- Chelsea have won back-to-back games in all competitions for the first thời gian since October 2022, a four-game chiến thắng streak spanning Oct. 1-16 .
- Chelsea’s Kai Havertz has converted all 15 of his career penalty kicks taken ( 11 – of-11 at club màn chơi ), excluding PK shootouts .
- Chelsea’s Raheem Sterling now has 27 career UEFA Champions League goals, which puts him three shy of Wayne Rooney’s record for the most by an Englishman .
- Giovanni Reyna entered as substitute for Dortmund in fifth minute for injured Julian Brandt và led his đội with two chances created và earned two fouls in attacking third .
Up next
Chelsea: The Blues resume their Premier League campaign with a visit to Leicester City on Saturday, March 11, at 10 a.m. ET. The following week, Chelsea host Everton in league play.
Borussia Dortmund: BVB shift their focus back to the Bundesliga, where they will visit Schalke 04 on Saturday, March 11 (stream live on ESPN+ at 12:30 p.m. ET). Then, Dortmund host Cologne in league play on Saturday, March 18 (stream live on ESPN+ at 1:30 p.m. ET).
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