Chelsea might have just played their last match in the Champions League for a while as they fell to a 2-0 defeat (4-0 on aggregate) to Real Madrid in their quarter-final second leg at Stamford Bridge on Tuesday evening courtesy of a Rodrygo brace.
Frank Lampard’s men gave a much better performance than in the reverse fixture in Madrid and they had several opportunities to go ahead in the match, but like the recurring theme of their season, they couldn’t convert. With the aggregate score at 2-0 you felt they still had a glimmer of hope in front of the home crowd but once Rodrygo opened the scoring in the second half, that sealed Chelsea’s fate.
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The Blues headed into the game with a mountain to climb but their intensity at the start of the match was impressive. N’Golo Kante had a great chance inside the opening stages. The ball found its way to the Frenchman in a great position in the box but he scuffed his effort wide of the near post. The Blues were able to get the crowd going which in turn was giving them something to feed off and they asked questions early of Los Blancos.
However the reigning champions still showed Chelsea that they can cause problems of their own as Rodrygo saw an effort from the right side cannon off the post. Kepa Arrizabalagawas then called into action to deny Luka Modric from a narrow angle after the midfielder was fed through by Dani Caravajal. Modric then provided a great chance for Vinicius Jr from close range but the Brazilian couldn’t convert as Wesley Fofana was caught napping.
It was then Chelsea who were given a great chance to break the deadlock. Reece James, who was having a strong performance at right-back, worked his way down the line and put an inviting ball into the box. It found its way to Marc Cucurella who was unmarked at the back post but the Spaniard’s effort was denied by Thibaut Courtois.
Early in the second half, Chelsea had another great chance to take the lead and once again it fell to Kante but somehow he didn’t find the back of the net. Havertz was next up to try and test Courtois but his effort was straight down the Belgian’s throat.
Despite all their pressure, Real Madrid found the opener through Rodrygo and the roaring groans around Stamford Bridge signified the tie was over. The home crowd went silent and it became that much easier for Carlo Ancelotti’s side to see out the tie. But Rodrygo wasn't finished there. In they dying stages of the match, a brilliant piece of play from Federico Valverde put the ball on a plate for the winger and he wrapped up the game for his side.
This match was the rock bottom of Chelsea’s season. This was their last hope to deliver some sort of success this year. They now essentially have nothing to play for except pride. The Blues are 11 points adrift of the top six with seven games to go and there are far too many teams in much better form than them so it is hard to imagine them earning a place in Europe next season.
Real Madrid have knocked them out of the Champions League quarter-finals for successive seasons and it looks like they might have to wait at least a year before they can square up again in Europe’s grandest competition. And given the disarray the west London club are in right now, a year away from Europe might help bring some harmony to the team and to the club itself.
