UCL: Chelsea, Villarreal Through To Quarter-final
Chelsea has successfully secured a place in the quarter-final of the UEFA Champions league after defeating Lille in the second leg of the round of 16 played on Wednesday’s night.
The Thomas Tuchel’s tutored side had to come back from a goal deficit and muscle out a victory against their host in France.
Burak Yilmaz had earlier put the homeside at front from the spot in the 38th minutes before Pulisic leveled for the blues at the stroke of the half time.
Sealing it off for the defending champions was Cezar Azipilicueta who wasted no time in connecting a Mason Mount’s cross in the 71st minutes to push the visitors to the safest side of the game.
It was all Chelsea’s affairs in the second half of the encounter as the lads from London played with their full hearts, showng sheer determination that defied their present predicament.
Having won 4-1 on aggregate, Chelsea have now joined two other English teams; Manchester City and Liverpool in the last eight of the prestigious competiton.
In Italy, Turin’s fans were left frustrated as Villarreal defeated Juventus 3-0 to book a spot in the quarter-final.
After playing out a barren draw in the first half, the visitors started an onslaught on the homeside knowingfully well that all was up for grab in a game where VAR played its own part.
Gerard Moreno through the spot broke the deadlock for Villarreal in the 78th minutes to usher in their dominance in the game.
While Pau Torres doubled the lead for the visitors in 82nd minutes with a solo strike, Nigerian-Dutch Arnaut Danjuma spelt the final doom for the Italian side with another spot kick affair in the stroke of the full time to make it three.
Other teams that has also qualified for the UEFA Champions league quarter-final are Real Madrid, Benfica, Bayern Munich and Atletico Madrid.