Champions League
Thomas Tuchel has taken an important step towards the quarter-finals of the Champions League with Club World Champion FC Chelsea. Also thanks to the German national player Kai Havertz and ex-Dortmunder Christian Pulisic (photo), the defending champion won 2-0 (1-0) against LOSC Lille from France in the round of 16 first leg on Tuesday.
Havertz, who replaced the weak Belgian Romelu Lukaku in the center of the attack, shot the superior Blues at London’s Stamford Bridge into the lead after just eight minutes. Pulisic (63rd) made everything clear for the favorites, who had two bad luck with injuries. Within ten minutes Mateo Kovacic and Hakim Ziyech limped off the field.
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The outsider from France played well, especially in the first half, but rarely posed a threat in front of the opposing goal, so that Chelsea keeper Edouard Mendy was hardly tested. Tuchel’s team is the clear favorite going into the round of 16 second leg in Lille on March 16.
Dusan Vlahovic was even faster than Havertz for his new club Juventus Turin in the round of 16 first leg at Villareal. Vlahovic, who came from AC Fiorentina in the winter for 81.6 million euros, scored the lead for Turin after just 31 seconds and thus surpassed the old record of a starting eleven debutant by Andreas Möller.
The 1990 World Champion scored the opening goal for Borussia Dortmund in the 3-1 draw against Juventus after 37 seconds on his debut in the premier class on September 13, 1995. After the lead, the Italian record champions’ defense was safe for a long time. In the middle of the second half, however, Daniel Parejo managed to equalize for the Spaniards in El Madrigal (66′).
Not undeserved, especially since Villarreal invested a lot. The round of 16 second legs in Lille and Turin will take place on March 16.
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