Real Madrid thrashed Chelsea 3-1 in the first leg of the Champions League quarter-finals at Stamford Bridge.
Los Blancos started the game excellently and were already 2-0 up midway through the first half courtesy of the contribution from Karim Benzema. However, just before the interval Kai Havertz reduced the margin for the Blues. But, the French superstar restored their two-goal margin just after the break.
Following this result, the defending European Champions are looking likely to be eliminated from this season’s competition at this stage unless they win the second leg away from home by a three goal margin. The good news for Thomas Tuchel’s side will is that the away goal rule is not in effect this term otherwise, the Blues would have had to score at least three goals to qualify for the semi-final.
Chelsea player ratings against Real Madrid:
Edouard Mendy – 5/10
The Senegalese looked shaky in this encounter and made a bad error which ended up being the third goal for Real Madrid.
Andreas Christensen – 5/10
The soon to be departed Chelsea star got the chance to start but struggled in the first half before being substituted at the interval.
Thiago Silva – 6/10
The veteran did a decent enough job in this encounter, however, failed to mark Benzema on the first two goals.
Antonio Rudiger – 5/10
The German can also be blamed for the third goal as his return pass was intercepted by Benzema.
Reece James – 6/10
The fullback failed to showcase his best in this game and he looked a bit short in match fitness.
Cesar Azpilicueta – 6/10
He did his job well in defending but since he was deployed on the wing-back role, he wasn’t threatening enough going forward.
Jorginho – 6.5/10
Delivered a great cross for the goal. However, he failed to take control of the midfield.
N’Golo Kante – 5/10
The Frenchman wasn’t at his best in this game and was taken off in the second half.
Christian Pulisic – 5/10
He failed to influence the game. He displayed a lacklustre performance in this encounter.
Mason Mount – 6/10
He tried to make an impact in this game but failed to produce his best throughout the game.
Kai Havertz – 7/10
Scored the goal for Chelsea and also overall performance was good for the Germany international.
Substitute:
Mateo Kovacic – 6/10
He played the full second half and Chelsea took control of the game after his introduction.
Hakim Ziyech – 5.5/10
The Moroccan was introduced to the game for his creativity. However, the playmaker wasn’t at his best in this game.
Ruben Loftus-Cheek – 6/10
Tried to break the Real Madrid defence by taking the spaces between the lines. But, he wasn’t able to find the final pass.
Romelu Lukaku – 5/10
He failed to control the ball and also missed a golden opportunity at goal.
