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Rediff.com  » Sports » PIX: Chelsea put off-field woes aside to win; Villarreal stun Juventus

PIX: Chelsea put off-field woes aside to win; Villarreal stun Juventus

March 17, 2022 08:35 IST
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Images from the UEFA Champions League Round of 16 second leg matches played on Wednesday night.

IMAGE: Chelsea captain Cesar Azpilicueta celebrates winning the UEFA Champions League Round Of 16 second leg match against Lille at Stade Pierre-Mauroy in Lille, on Wednesday. Photograph: Catherine Ivill/Getty Images

Holders Chelsea made light of their off-pitch problems to reach the Champions League quarter-finals by beating Lille 2-1 away on Wednesday to complete a 4-1 aggregate victory.

 

The Premier League side, playing amid sanctions imposed on their Russian owner Roman Abramovich following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, eased through thanks to goals by Christian Pulisic and Cesar Azpilicueta.

French champions Lille dominated for long spells and opened the scoring thanks to a Burak Yilmaz penalty in the opening half, but lacked precision up front and paid dearly for lapses in concentration.

Chelsea, operating on a special licence from the British government that has limited their spending and impacted their operations, showed great composure to ease into the last eight.

"Everyone is calm at the club. The club's culture is about football. Football is the priority at Chelsea, that's why we're focused on what happens on the pitch," Chelsea coach Thomas Tuchel told French TV channel RMC Sport.

At their Pierre Mauroy stadium, Lille had made the better start to the match.

Jocelyn Gouvennec's side put Chelsea on the back foot as Mateo Kovacic, Jorginho and N'Golo Kante struggled to take control of the midfield.

IMAGE: Christian Pulisic scores the first goal for Chelsea. Photograph: Catherine Ivill/Getty Images

Lille were rewarded in the 38th minute when they were awarded a penalty following a VAR review after a Jorginho handball in the area.

The 36-year-old Yilmaz, the third oldest scorer in the Champions League knockout stages after Paolo Maldini and Ryan Giggs, buried the spot-kick into the top corner to give the hosts a deserved lead and high hopes of an upset after losing the first leg 2-0 at Stamford Bridge.

Lille, who had not conceded a goal in their three Ligue 1 games since the first leg, let their guard down, however, and Chelsea punished them with their first shot on target as Pulisic collected a fine through ball from Jorginho to score with a low shot three minutes into first-half stoppage time.

Although they were hit by injuries which forced Sven Botman and Zeki Celik to leave the pitch, Lille applied more pressure after the break and Yilmaz wasted two clear chances.

Chelsea were far more ruthless and after 71 minutes Mason Mount's cross bounced off Azpilicueta's knee into the top corner to end Lille's hopes of reaching the last eight.

The result left Lille frustrated after a good performance that ended in defeat.

"I'm frustrated by the result, and by the fact that we missed out on qualification," said midfielder Amadou Onana.

"Congratulations to Chelsea, they were the better team."

Villarreal late show knocks Juventus out

IMAGE: Villarreal's players celebrate winning their match against Juventus. Photograph: Valerio Pennicino/Getty Images

Villarreal scored three late goals to secure a stunning 3-0 Champions League second-leg victory at Juventus on Wednesday, condemning the Serie A side to a 4-1 aggregate loss and a last-16 exit for the third successive season.

Having fallen before the quarter-finals against Olympique Lyonnais and Porto in the previous two seasons, in-form Juventus, who had lost just once in their last 21 matches in all competitions, were firm favourites to progress.

Juve dominated the first half and were unfortunate not to go into the break in front after Dusan Vlahovic's brilliant flicked effort came back off the crossbar, but they could not keep up the pressure in the second period.

Villarreal were content to sit back and wait for their moment, which came in the 78th minute after the visitors were awarded a penalty following a VAR review, with substitute Gerard Moreno, who had only just come on, squeezing the spot kick home.

Juve threw on Argentine striker Paulo Dybala as they looked to level the tie, but goals down the other end from defender Pau Torres and another penalty, this time converted by Arnaut Danjuma, completed a famous win for Unai Emery's team.

It is the first time Emery has progressed from a tie in the knockout stages of the Champions League, while Villarreal had not qualified for the quarter-finals of the competition since 2008-09.

"I actually missed the last penalty I took in a game, but everyone had my back and I knew I was going to score," Moreno said.

"Once we got ahead we were more comfortable. We showed that we are always able to compete with the best at the highest level, whoever is on the pitch."

IMAGE: Arnaut Danjuma scores Villarreal's third goal from the penalty spot. Photograph: Catherine Ivill/Getty Images

Juventus came into the last 16 having also enjoyed an impressive group-stage campaign where they finished top ahead of the current holders Chelsea.

A blistering start saw Spanish striker Alvaro Morata denied by a fine save from Villarreal goalkeeper Geronimo Rulli, giving the home fans hope that progression to the last eight would be a smooth process.

January signing Vlahovic was proving to be a real handful, drilling wide before his improvised effort came out off the woodwork.

Villarreal were enjoying plenty of possession, but could not do much with it. They looked more comfortable after the break, however, as Juve struggled to keep up their momentum.

Daniele Rugani's lunging tackle on Francis Coquelin gave Villarreal the chance to lead the tie for the first time. Juve keeper Wojciech Szczesny, who saved a penalty at the weekend, almost kept out the spot kick, but saw the ball squirm through his hands.

Torres's finish from a corner sparked wild scenes of celebration with Villarreal knowing the job was done, even though there was still time for another converted penalty, after Matthijs de Ligt’s handball.

Having dominated for such long periods, only Juve will know how they managed to lose by three goals.

"I think the team played well for over 75 minutes," Juve coach Massimiliano Allegri said. "In the second half, Villarreal decided to just defend in block but they had one chance and they took it.

"We had good chances in the first half, fewer in the second because Villarreal started defending with 11 men, clearly trying to bring the game to extra time. Then that (opening) goal changed everything."

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