Chelsea’s hopes of retaining the Champions League are hanging on a thread after Karim Benzema’s hat-trick in the first leg of their quarter-finals clashes put Real Madrid in a superior position.
The informed French man handed Madrid the lead with two quickfire goals in three minutes before Kai Havertz’s header presented Chelsea with a possible lifeline before the break.
However, six minutes after the break, Thomas Tuchel’s man saw their hopes of a comeback come crashing down as Benzema capitalized on Edouard Mendy’s blunder to grab his third for the night, sealing a much-needed victory for Madrid ahead of the second leg of the encounter at the Santiago Bernabeu next Tuesday.
Villarreal 1 – 0 Bayern Munich
In the other game of the night, Bayern Munich fell to a surprise 1-0 defeat at the hands of Villarreal.
