Dortmund drop out of the Champions League after loss in London
Chelsea beat Borussia Dortmund 2-0 at Stamford Bridge to turn the Champions League last-16 tie around and advance 2-1 on aggregate.
| Marco Reus. | Photo: Steffen Prößdorf, CC BY-SA 4.0 |
Edin Terzic's men had won the first leg 1-0 in Germany, but failed to finish the job tonight as they crashed out with a 1-2 aggregate defeat.
The loss ended a 10-game winning streak for Dortmund, who had won all of their matches this year before tonight.
Raheem Sterling opened the scoring for Chelsea just before the break, with Kai Havertz making it 2-0 from the penalty spot in the beginning of the second half to seal the deal for 'The Blues'.
Dortmund had to manage without Gregor Kobel for the second successive game due to a muscle problem, with Alexander Meyer deputising for him once more, and 'Die Schwarzgelben' were hit by another injury blow in the opening minutes of the game as in-form midfielder Julian Brandt was forced off.
The hosts started the game on the front foot and threatened through Joao Felix and Kai Havertz. At the other end, Marco Reus was responsible for Dortmund's best attempt in the first half, lifting a freekick over the wall, but the ball was kept out by Kepa.
Chelsea kept pushing for the opener, and after Kai Havertz hit the post and had a goal ruled out for offside, Graham Potter's troops finally drew first blood, when Raheem Sterling fired home from close range after taking a few touches in the Dortmund area.
The hosts got the perfect start to the second half, as they were awarded a penalty in the 46th minute after Marius Wolf was adjudged to have handled the ball in the box.
Kai Havertz stepped up and sent his penalty onto the post, but he was given a second chance after Dortmund were adjudged to have encroached. The German international picked the same corner, this time with more precision, and put the ball past Meyer.
Jude Bellingham almost levelled the scoreline with 58 minutes on the clock, but his shot went narrowly wide from inside the box.
With Dortmund chasing a goal, Chelsea were given space on the counter and struck again in the 76th minute as Raheem Sterling was released and squared the ball across to Conor Galagher, who slotted home. But, unfortunately for the hosts, a VAR review showed that Sterling was offside in the build-up.
Dortmund piled on the pressure in the closing stage of the second half, but Chelsea held on to seal their place in the quarter-finals.