Chelsea produced a composed performance to secure a fully deserved draw and a crucial away goal to put themselves in a promising position after their Champions League semi-final first leg against Real Madrid.
Thomas Tuchel’s side were superior on the night and might even regard themselves as unfortunate not to take an advantage into the return at Stamford Bridge in eight days’ time as they set their sights on a final date against either Manchester City or Paris St-Germain in Istanbul on 29 May.
Chelsea over-ran Madrid in the early stages and should have taken the lead when Timo Werner shot straight at keeper Thibaut Courtois from only six yards – but they were ahead after only 14 minutes when Christian Pulisic kept his cool to steer home a clever finish.
Real were on the ropes but danger man Karim Benzema, who had glanced the outside of an upright from long range, brought them back into the game with a brilliant equaliser, cushioning the ball with a header before sending an acrobatic volley beyond Edouard Mendy in the 29th minute.
Chelsea had the better of the second half but could not carve out the chance to score a potentially vital second. Manager Tuchel will still be very satisfied with both the performance and result.
Advantage Chelsea
Chelsea’s only regret as they left rain-soaked Madrid will be that they did not make their moments of superiority count even more after a performance of quality and discipline.
Werner was guilty of an awful miss in the opening moments, shooting straight at Courtois with the goal at his mercy, but Chelsea were soon celebrating the brilliance of Pulisic, who showed commendable calm to go around the keeper in a congested penalty before steering a shot between two Real Madrid defenders on the line.
Chelsea had a brief spell of anxiety around the time when Benzema equalised but they were rarely troubled until the dying seconds when Raphael Varane steered a header wide.
Tuchel will be happy but he knows this tie is far from over and much work remains to be done against this dangerous Madrid side, who have already proved their enduring ability to get the job done in the Champions League by eliminating Liverpool.
Chelsea have the edge because of that away goal but Real are masters of these situations and will still travel to Stamford Bridge with confidence for the second leg.
More to follow.
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Real Madrid
- Squad number7Player nameE Hazard
- Squad number11Player nameAsensio
- Squad number19Player nameOdriozola
- Squad number25Player nameRodrygo
Chelsea
Squad number16Player nameMendy
Squad number4Player nameChristensen
Squad number6Player nameThiago Silva
Squad number2Player nameRüdiger
Squad number28Player nameAzpilicueta
Squad number7Player nameKanté
Squad number5Player nameJorginho
Squad number19Player nameMount
Squad number21Player nameChilwell
Squad number10Player namePulisic
Squad number11Player nameWerner
Squad number22Player nameZiyech
Squad number24Player nameJames
Squad number29Player nameHavertz
Line-ups
Real Madrid
Formation 3-5-2
- 1Courtois
- 3Militão
- 5VaraneBooked at 78mins
- 6Nacho
- 2CarvajalSubstituted forOdriozolaat 77′minutesBooked at 89mins
- 10Modric
- 14Casemiro
- 8KroosBooked at 60mins
- 12MarceloBooked at 65minsSubstituted forAsensioat 77′minutes
- 9BenzemaSubstituted forRodrygoat 90+2′minutes
- 20VinÃcius JúniorBooked at 27minsSubstituted forE Hazardat 66′minutes
Substitutes
- 7E Hazard
- 11Asensio
- 13Lunin
- 19Odriozola
- 22Isco
- 24Mariano
- 25Rodrygo
- 26Altube
- 30Arribas
- 31Blanco
- 35Gutiérrez
Chelsea
Formation 3-5-2
- 16Mendy
- 4Christensen
- 6Thiago Silva
- 2Rüdiger
- 28AzpilicuetaSubstituted forJamesat 67′minutes
- 7Kanté
- 5Jorginho
- 19Mount
- 21Chilwell
- 10PulisicBooked at 38minsSubstituted forZiyechat 66′minutes
- 11WernerSubstituted forHavertzat 66′minutes
Substitutes
- 1Arrizabalaga
- 3Alonso
- 9Abraham
- 13Caballero
- 15Zouma
- 18Giroud
- 20Hudson-Odoi
- 22Ziyech
- 23Gilmour
- 24James
- 29Havertz
- 33Emerson
Live Text
Match ends, Real Madrid 1, Chelsea 1.
Second Half ends, Real Madrid 1, Chelsea 1.
Rodrygo (Real Madrid) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Foul by Antonio Rüdiger (Chelsea).
Substitution, Real Madrid. Rodrygo replaces Karim Benzema.
Luka Modric (Real Madrid) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Foul by Antonio Rüdiger (Chelsea).
Ãlvaro Odriozola (Real Madrid) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
Foul by Ãlvaro Odriozola (Real Madrid).
Antonio Rüdiger (Chelsea) wins a free kick on the left wing.
Corner, Real Madrid. Conceded by Ben Chilwell.
Attempt missed. Raphael Varane (Real Madrid) header from the centre of the box misses to the right. Assisted by Toni Kroos with a cross following a corner.
Corner, Real Madrid. Conceded by N’Golo Kanté.
Attempt blocked. Toni Kroos (Real Madrid) right footed shot from outside the box is blocked. Assisted by Luka Modric.
Offside, Real Madrid. Nacho tries a through ball, but Marco Asensio is caught offside.
Attempt saved. Hakim Ziyech (Chelsea) left footed shot from outside the box is saved in the top right corner.
Raphael Varane (Real Madrid) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
Kai Havertz (Chelsea) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Foul by Raphael Varane (Real Madrid).
Substitution, Real Madrid. Marco Asensio replaces Marcelo.
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