Karim Benzema saves Real Madrid on a tough evening against Chelsea


Tuesday, April 12, 2022 at 11:31 PM• Dominic Mostert • Last update: 23:40

Real Madrid has qualified for the semi-finals of the Champions League with hanging and strangulation. The team of coach Carlo Ancelotti had an excellent starting position after last week’s 1-3 win over Chelsea, but lost in front of their own audience with the same figures in regular time. So there had to be an extension, in which Real came back to 2-3. Karim Benzema was responsible for the decisive goal. In the semi-finals the Royal up against Atletico Madrid or Manchester City.

Chelsea had to hope for an early goal to ease the tension. The first goal attempts were for Real Madrid, but after fifteen minutes Chelsea indeed opened the score. With a tight pass over the midfield, Mateo Kovacic got the ball to Ruben Loftus-Cheek. Through Timo Werner’s knee, the ball ended up at Mason Mount, who popped up in the penalty area and picked the top right corner: 0-1.

The goal increased fear at Real Madrid. Just one extra goal was enough for Chelsea to completely wipe the deficit and the home side played even more conservatively than before the goal. As a result, Chelsea had the upper hand in the first half, although no great chances were created for the 0-2. Kovacic and Antonio Rüdiger were unsuccessful in their attempts; on the other side, Casemiro shot wide.

At the start of the second half, Courtois struggled to avoid a corner for Chelsea: the goalkeeper sprinted towards the back line to keep the ball in, after which he got it under control in two instances. Courtois got help from Casemiro, who kept the onrushing Kai Havertz away from the ball. Remarkably, the contact between the two players did not result in a penalty for Chelsea. Shortly afterwards, the visitors still made it 0-2. A deflected bang from Reece James led to a measured corner from Mount, from which Rüdiger headed in.

Real then opened the hunt for the 1-2. A free kick by Toni Kroos was tapped from the top corner by Édouard Mendy; a header by Benzema after preparatory work by Ferland Mendy exploded on the crossbar. In between, a goal by Marcos Alonso on the other side was rejected because he took the ball with his arm into the box. Fifteen minutes before the end, Chelsea still scored 0-3. Werner received the ball from Kovacic, remained calm in the penalty area, cut his guards out and outsmarted Courtois in the right corner.

Chelsea seemed to be preparing for the semi-finals, but after a wonderful pass with the outside of the foot of Luka Modric, Rodrygo forced an extension by successfully taking the ball out of the air: 1-3. Real quickly came back to 2-3 in extra time. The indomitable Benzema, who already shaped the comeback against Paris Saint-Germain in the previous round, hit the mark when he received a bounce from Vinícius Júnior in front of the goal. The pace was killer in overtime. Substitute Hakim Ziyech was still close to 2-4, but came across Courtois. The detached Havertz headed wide from close range. After a failed shot by Ziyech, Jorginho got the ball on goal from the turn.