Bayern Munich and Chelsea have advanced to the UEFA Champions League quarterfinals, following their respective wins tonight. After being confident in the opening legs of their matchups against Lazio and Atletico Madrid, these two sides have once again delivered victories.
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Bayern was routine against Lazio at Allianz Arena, posting a 2-1 win. Robert Lewandowski scored in the 33rd minute from the penalty, drawing the first blood in one highly interesting sequence. Lazio had their chances, especially the captain Sergej Milinkovic-Savic but failed to utilize at least one of them.
On the other side, the Bavarians were aggressive, but they weren’t direct enough until Lewandowski’s goal.
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Eric Choupo-Moring entered the pitch in the second half, and he didn’t properly warm up when he found the back of the net. On the other side, Lazio fought bravely, and eventually, the Italians scored a goal in the 82nd minute, with Parolo striking a header that set the final result of the match.
The Germans and the reigning European champions advanced to the next stage with a total win on aggregate 6-2.
Chelsea had a 1-0 lead from the first leg against Atletico Madrid, and the Blues had a lot of luck at Stamford tonight. It could be said that the referee helped the hosts, when he didn’t award the penalty to the guests after 27 minutes of play. Chelsea’s captain Cesar Azpilicueta brought down Yannick Carrasco in the box, with the Belgian being in front of the goal.
The guests from Madrid were furious, but that didn’t change anything. To make it even worse for them, Chelsea took the lead seven minutes later, with Timo Werner assisting Hakim Ziyech, who easily scored.
Atletico’s players were obviously frustrated, but they kept on pushing forward, yet without any success. The frustration grew, and eight minutes before the end of the regulations, Stefan Savic allowed himself to be provoked, receiving a red card once hitting Antonio Rudiger, Chelsea’s defender.
Emerson would later seal the game in the stoppage time, following a perfect counterattack sparked by Christian Pulisic. The final result 2-0 for Chelsea, and 3-0 on aggregate.
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-->The draw for the quarterfinals of the UCL is set for Friday. Besides Bayern and Chelsea, six more clubs will be involved – Liverpool, Borussia Dortmund, Porto, Manchester City, PSG, and Real Madrid.
