Penalty after VAR intervention
The Blues only got more control of the game after 25 minutes, but there were still no real chances for either side. In the middle of an attack by the Londoners, referee Davide Massa suddenly blew his whistle ten minutes before the break – the VAR had noticed something. In fact, in a crowded penalty area, Jorgingho made an active movement with his forearm in the direction of the playground equipment when trying to block the ball and then clearly touched the ball: Massa gave a penalty.
Burak Yilmaz slammed the ball past Edouard Mendy into the net with elemental force, and even the world goalkeeper had zero chance. Suddenly, Lille were just a goal away from extra time, but Chelsea kept their cool and were rewarded before half-time. Jorginho made up for his mistake at 0-1 with a dream pass to Christian Pulišić, the ex-Dortmunder took a half-right towards the goal and pushed the ball past goalkeeper Leo Jardim into the far corner – the 1-1 with the first real chance (45th minute). ).
Xeka fails at the post
Even after this setback, Lille remained an unpleasant opponent. In the 51st, a Yilmaz header narrowly missed the left post, Mendy might have been too late. The goalkeeper would certainly have been too late twelve minutes later when the central defence, in which Christensen had been injured, looked disoriented again. But then the left post saved Xeka’s header.
The difference that night was effectiveness. With 20 minutes remaining, Chelsea had only their second chance to score in the entire game – but that resulted in a 2-1 lead. Mason Mount had made a great impact on the left and crossed to the far post. There, the full-back Azpilicueta rushed up and pushed the ball over the line for the preliminary decision – the rest was easy draining.
Lille fights for Europe, Chelsea for the future
Lille will almost certainly not be back in the next season Champions League be represented. In Ligue 1, the team is only sixth and seven points behind third-placed OGC Nice. On Saturday (03/19/22) at FC Nantes it’s all about not letting the gap to the international places tear down prematurely.
Chelsea, on the other hand, is back on the right track towards the premier class from a sporting point of view. It is still possible to repeat the great triumph, and third place in the Premiere League seems to have been secured. On Saturday there is a chance of reaching the semi-finals in the FA Cup at FC Middlesbrough. The political situation alone is currently making this traditional club a big question mark.