Raheem Sterling scored in the first half to help Chelsea produce one of the close football results of the weekend in the Champions League. After Marius Wolf was penalized for handball, Havertz shot his original effort against the post, but a retake was ordered due to encroachment, and the German international held his nerve, picking the same area and converting on the second try (53). Following a bright start by the hosts at Stamford Bridge, Raheem Sterling tied the tie on aggregate with a powerful strike from the middle of the box from Ben Chilwell’s cut-back (43). Chelsea, bolstered by their much-needed 1-0 Premier League win against Leeds on Saturday, came into the game having only scored twice in their previous seven games but finally found some cutting edge in front of goal, with the result keeping their European dream alive.
Chelsea was initially on the front foot after a 10-minute delay due to traffic surrounding Stamford Bridge, with Joao Felix having an early shot knocked down by Alexander Meyer before Havertz blazed wildly over when placed through on goal. Dortmund weathered the early storm and came near when a Marco Reus free-kick forced an acrobatic save from Kepa Arrizabalaga, but Chelsea quickly regained control. They carried the ball forward quickly and directly, and despite some sloppiness in possession, the approach resulted in a slew of first-half chances, with Havertz smashing a shot off the inside of the post that whistled across the goal line.
When Sterling was denied by Meyer, Havertz thought he had opened the scoring with a second shot that thundered in off the underside of the bar, but the linesman raised his flag, with VAR revealing Sterling to be marginally offside in the build-up. Chelsea was reminded of a familiar narrative when an unidentified Kalidou Koulibaly miskicked a Chilwell corner, leaving Meyer alone, and Felix’s follow-up effort was blocked. But the breakthrough came when Chilwell sprinted into the Dortmund box on the left and cut the ball back for Sterling, who fired home at the second try after struggling to make a clean connection with his shot the first time.
Chelsea was once again obliged to Chilwell as he showed great alertness at the other end to prevent Raphael Guerreiro from getting through on goal shortly before halftime, and their second came soon after play began after halftime. Dortmund felt the penalty was unjustly awarded due to Wolf’s proximity to Chilwell when the winger’s attempted cross struck his hand, but referee Danny Makkelie was unimpressed after consulting the pitch-side monitor. Chelsea was given a reprieve when a re-take was ordered for encroachment by players from both sides after Havertz’s shot hit the upright, but he finished clinically with his second, stalling his run-up as he picked the same area once more.
Dortmund had the best of things after that, attempting to pull a goal back and force extra time, but Chelsea held firm, with Jude Bellingham shooting wide and Wolf having a diagonal effort saved by Kepa. In the end, the hosts’ one-goal aggregate advantage was sufficient, with a pleased Potter joining the post-match celebrations on the pitch, the victory keeping their Champions League ambitions alive despite their Premier League woes.
“At the end, there is a lot of feeling. It was tight at the end, but the boys performed admirably. I am overjoyed for them, and it is fantastic for everyone here,” Chelsea head coach Graham Potter said. “The atmosphere in the changing room was electric. We’ve been through a lot, so this tournament means a lot to us. We wanted to move on and get into the last eight, which will set us up for the following four weeks. We need to rest and prepare for our game against Leicester on Saturday. Two clean sheets after a difficult period is fantastic for the boys. You get that in life, and how you respond is important, and the guys have been amazing.”
“Chelsea, congratulations. I believe it was a close game. In this kind of games, millimeters or moments determine whether or not you advance to the next round,” Borussia Dortmund head coach Edin Terzic said. “We had some bad luck, but that’s part of the game, so we’re not going to complain. I believe both clubs deserved to advance to the next round, but Chelsea scored twice tonight and we did not, so we can’t complain about being eliminated from the Champions League.”
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