Real Madrid is well placed to claim an 11th successive aggregate UEFA Champions League quarter-final victory as they travel to London to face Chelsea holding a 2-0 first-leg advantage. Catch the action live on SuperSport and Showmax Pro.
The Spanish side eliminated their English opponents, then European champions, at the same stage of last season’s competition and took a firm grip of this tie in Madrid thanks to goals in each half from Karim Benzema (22) and – after the visitors had lost Ben Chilwell to a 59th-minute red card – substitute Marco Asensio (74).
This is the third season running in which the sides have met in the knockout rounds and each has enjoyed recent success against the other en route to taking the trophy. Madrid edged through a remarkable last-eight meeting last season on their way to claiming their 14th European Cup, while Chelsea’s 2020/21 triumph included a semi-final elimination of the Spanish side.
Madrid is looking to reach the UEFA Champions League semi-finals for the 11th time in 13 seasons, while Chelsea have appeared in the last four eight times but only once in the last eight campaigns.
The Spanish club have won seven of their nine games in this season’s competition (D1 L1) while Chelsea have recorded five victories and three defeats – all those losses away from home.
The winners of this tie will face Manchester City or Bayern München in the semi-final.
PREVIOUS MEETINGS
The sides met at the same stage of last season’s competition, Carlo Ancelotti’s Madrid winning 5-4 on aggregate. The Spanish side won the first leg 3-1 at Stamford Bridge with Benzema scoring twice in the first half (21, 24). Although Kai Havertz halved the Chelsea deficit five minutes before the break, Benzema completed his hat-trick in the first minute of the second period.
Thomas Tuchel’s Chelsea came back strongly at the Santiago Bernabéu, goals from Mason Mount (15) and Antonio Rüdiger – now of Madrid – (51) levelling the tie before Timo Werner gave the then holders the aggregate lead with 15 minutes left. Rodrygo’s 80th-minute reply forced extra time, where Benzema applied the decisive strike in the 96th minute.
Tuchel’s Chelsea were 3-1 aggregate winners against Zinédine Zidane’s Madrid in the 2020/21 semi-finals, goals from Werner (28) and Mount (85) securing a 2-0 second-leg victory at Stamford Bridge. The first leg in Spain had finished 1-1, Christian Pulišic’s 14th-minute opener for the visitors cancelled out by Benzema 15 minutes later.
The teams had met in only three fixtures before 2020 – in two UEFA finals which were both won by Chelsea. The second of those contests was the 1998 UEFA Super Cup in Monaco, when a Gustavo Poyet goal seven minutes from time at the Stade Louis II gave UEFA Cup Winners’ Cup holders Chelsea a 1-0 victory against Madrid, who had qualified by winning the UEFA Champions League.
The English club had also come out on top in the 1971 European Cup Winners’ Cup final against Madrid in Piraeus. The first game finished 1-1, Peter Osgood’s 56th-minute goal at the Georgios Karaiskakis Stadium cancelled out in the final minute by Ignacio Zoco.
Two days later in a replay at the same stadium, first-half goals from John Dempsey (31) and Osgood again (39) earned Chelsea their first European trophy despite Sebastián Fleitas pulling one back for Madrid 15 minutes from time.
FORM GUIDE
Chelsea
Chelsea’s record in European Cup quarterfinals is W8 L3: – 2021/22 Real Madrid L 4-5 (1-3 h, 3-2 a aet)
– 2020/21 Porto W 2-1 (2-0 a, 0-1 h)
– 2013/14 Paris Saint-Germain W 3-3 away goals (1-3 a, 2-0 h)
– 2011/12 Benfica W 3-1 (1-0 a, 2-1 h)
– 2010/11 Manchester United L 1-3 (0-1 h, 1-2 a)
– 2008/09 Liverpool W 7-5 (3-1 a, 4-4 h)
– 2007/08 Fenerbahçe W 3-2 (1-2 a, 2-0 h)
– 2006/07 Valencia W 3-2 (1-1 h, 2-1 a)
– 2004/05 Bayern München W 6-5 (4-2 h, 2-3 a)
– 2003/04 Arsenal W 3-2 (1-1 h, 2-1 a)
– 1999/00 Barcelona L 4-6 (3-1 h, 1-5 a aet)
This is Chelsea’s 12th UEFA Champions League quarter-final, taking them joint fifth with Juventus in the all-time list and two behind Manchester United’s English record.
This is Chelsea’s fourth successive UEFA Champions League campaign and 19th overall, level with Arsenal and behind only Manchester United (24) among English clubs. They have twice won the trophy, in 2012 and 2021.
All but one of Chelsea’s 19 UEFA Champions League campaigns have extended into the knockout rounds – the sole exception in 2012/13, when they became the only holders to fail to survive the initial group stage, although they had the consolation of going on to win the UEFA Europa League.
Having finished second in Group H behind Juventus last season, the Blues beat LOSC Lille home (2-0) and away (2-1) in the round of 16 before bowing out against Madrid.
This season, the Blues opened with a 1-0 defeat at Dinamo Zagreb, a result that prompted the departure of Tuchel. His replacement Graham Potter began his reign with a 1-1 draw at home to Salzburg before Chelsea embarked on a run of four straight wins, including home (3-0) and away (2-0) against AC Milan and, on Matchday 6, a 2-1 home victory against Dinamo that was their 100th in the UEFA Champions League – making them only the sixth club to reach a century.
Chelsea was beaten 1-0 at Borussia Dortmund in the round of 16 first leg but recovered to progress thanks to a 2-0 second-leg success at Stamford Bridge, Raheem Sterling and Havertz, a penalty, scoring the goals. Potter was subsequently replaced on an interim basis by Frank Lampard.
The first-leg loss in Madrid is one of eight in Chelsea’s last 39 UEFA Champions League matches (W24 D7).
Chelsea have won 11 of their last 19 European matches at Stamford Bridge (D5 L3), last season’s reverse against Madrid ending a run of six straight victories, all with clean sheets. Their home record in this season’s UEFA Champions League is W3 D1 with eight goals scored and just two conceded.
The London club were third in the Premier League in 2021/22, their highest finish since 2018/19, and finished as runners-up to Liverpool in both the FA Cup and the English League Cup, losing both goalless finals in a penalty shoot-out. They did, however, win both the UEFA Super Cup – beating Villarreal 6-5 on penalties after a 1-1 draw in Belfast in August – and, for the first time, the FIFA Club World Cup, Havertz scoring the extra-time winner from the penalty spot in the final against Palmeiras of Brazil.
The win against Villarreal was Chelsea’s first UEFA Super Cup victory since beating Madrid in 1998; they had lost in 2012, 2013 and 2019.
Chelsea’s overall record against Spanish clubs is W20 D18 L12. At home it is W11 D7 L4.
This season’s first-leg defeat by Madrid is one of only six in Chelsea’s last 34 matches against Spanish opponents overall (W12 D16). Before winning 4-0 at Sevilla on Matchday 5 of the 2020/21 UEFA Champions League, the Blues had been victorious in only one of their previous 11 fixtures against Liga clubs, home and away (D6 L4); they have now won five of the last nine.
Chelsea have played 14 two-legged knockout ties against Spanish clubs (W6 L8).
The 2-0 victory against Madrid in May 2021 is one of only two Chelsea wins in their last eight home games against Spanish visitors (D3 L3).
The London club were unbeaten in their first five home knockout games against Spanish teams in UEFA competition (W4 D1) but have managed only three victories in the nine subsequent matches (D3 L3).
The Blues have won nine of the 15 UEFA competition ties in which they had a first-leg deficit to overturn at Stamford Bridge, most recently beating Dortmund in this season’s round of 16. When losing 2-0 away their aggregate record is W1 L1, the defeat having come in the most recent tie, against Hapoel Tel-Aviv in the 2001/02 UEFA Cup second round (1-1 h), after an extra-time victory against Club Brugge in the quarterfinals of their victorious 1970/71 European Cup Winners’ Cup campaign (4-0 h).
Chelsea’s record in seven UEFA penalty shoot-outs is W3 L4:
– 1-4 v Liverpool, 2006/07 UEFA Champions League semi-final – 5-6 v Manchester United, 2007/08 UEFA Champions League final
– 4-3 v Bayern München, 2011/12 UEFA Champions League final
– 4-5 v Bayern München, 2013 UEFA Super Cup
– 4-3 v Eintracht Frankfurt, 2018/19 UEFA Europa League semi-final
– 4-5 v Liverpool, 2019 UEFA Super Cup
– 6-5 v Villarreal, 2021 UEFA Super Cup
Real Madrid
Madrid is in the European Cup quarterfinals for the 38th time, more than any other side. Their record is W31 L6:
– 2021/22 Chelsea W 5-4 (3-1 a, 2-3 h aet)
– 2020/21 Liverpool W 3-1 (3-1 h, 0-0 a)
– 2017/18 Juventus W 4-3 (3-0 a, 1-3 h)
– 2016/17 Bayern München W 6-3 (2-1 a, 4-2 h)
– 2015/16 Wolfsburg W 3-2 (0-2 a, 3-0 h)
– 2014/15 Atlético de Madrid W 1-0 (0-0 a, 1-0 h)
– 2013/14 Borussia Dortmund W 3-2 (3-0 h, 0-2 a)
– 2012/13 Galatasaray W 5-3 (3-0 h, 2-3 a)
– 2011/12 APOEL W 8-2 (3-0 a, 5-2 h)
– 2010/11 Tottenham W 5-0 (4-0 h, 1-0 a)
– 2003/04 Monaco L 5-5 away goals (4-2 h, 1-3 a)
– 2002/03 Manchester United W 6-5 (3-1 h, 3-4 a)
– 2001/02 Bayern München W 3-2 (1-2 a, 2-0 h)
– 2000/01 Galatasaray W 5-3 (2-3 a, 3-0 h)
– 1999/00 Manchester United W 3-2 (0-0 h, 3-2 a)
– 1998/99 Dynamo Kyiv L 1-3 (1-1 h, 0-2 a)
– 1997/98 Bayer Leverkusen W 4-1 (1-1 a, 3-0 h)
– 1995/96 Juventus L 1-2 (1-0 h, 0-2 a)
– 1990/91 Spartak Moskva L 1-3 (0-0 a, 1-3 h)
– 1988/89 PSV Eindhoven W 3-2 (1-1 a, 2-1 h)
– 1987/88 Bayern München W 4-3 (2-3 a, 2-0 h)
– 1986/87 Crvena zvezda W 4-4 away goals (2-4 a, 2-0 h)
– 1980/81 Spartak Moskva W 2-0 (0-0 a, 2-0 h)
– 1979/80 Celtic W 3-2 (0-2 a, 3-0 h)
– 1975/76 Borussia Mönchengladbach W 3-3 away goals (2-2 a, 1-1 h)
– 1972/73 Dynamo Kyiv W 3-0 (0-0 a, 3-0 h)
– 1967/68 Sparta Praha W 4-2 (3-0 h, 1-2 a)
– 1966/67 Inter Milan L 0-3 (0-1 a, 0-2 h)
– 1965/66 Anderlecht W 4-3 (0-1 a, 4-2 h)
– 1964/65 Benfica L 3-6 (1-5 a, 2-1 h)
– 1963/64 AC Milan W 4-3 (4-1 h, 0-2 a)
– 1961/62 Juventus W 3-1 replay (1-0 a, 0-1 h)
– 1959/60 Nice W 6-3 (2-3 a, 4-0 h)
– 1958/59 Wiener Sport-Club W 7-1 (0-0 a, 7-1 h)
– 1957/58 Sevilla W 10-2 (8-0 h, 2-2 a)
– 1956/57 Nice W 6-2 (3-0 h, 3-2 a)
– 1955/56 Partizan W 4-3 (4-0 h, 0-3 a)
Madrid is making their 19th UEFA Champions League quarter-final appearance, behind only Bayern (21). They have won their last ten ties at this stage of the competition – all against different opponents.
This is Madrid’s 27th UEFA Champions League campaign, a record they share with Barcelona – and an unrivalled 26th in a row. All 27 have extended into the knockout rounds.
Madrid claimed their 14th European Cup in 2021/22. Ancelotti’s side had finished first in Group D on 15 points, winning five of their six games, before dramatic knockout wins against Paris Saint-Germain (0-1 a, 3-1 h), holders Chelsea and Manchester City (3-4 a, 3-1 h aet) led to a 1-0 final defeat of Liverpool.
That made Ancelotti the first coach to win four European Cups; he had been level with Bob Paisley and Zidane on three. The Italian is also the only coach to have taken a team to five finals.
Benzema, Dani Carvajal and Luka Modric all equalled Cristiano Ronaldo’s record of appearing in five UEFA Champions League final victories.
Benzema was top scorer in the 2021/22 UEFA Champions League on 15 goals; ten came in the knockout rounds, equalling Ronaldo’s record in 2016/17, also for Madrid.
Madrid were also Spanish champions in 2021/22, their 35th Liga title overall and a second in three years. It was only the fourth time they had won the league and the European Cup in the same season, after 1956/57, 1957/58 and 2016/17.
Ancelotti’s side have already claimed European silverware this season, goals from David Alaba and Benzema earning a 2-0 victory against UEFA Europa League winners Eintracht Frankfurt in the UEFA Super Cup in Helsinki on 10 August. It was Madrid’s fifth Super Cup victory, equalling the competition record of AC Milan and Barcelona.
Madrid also won the FIFA Club World Cup for the fifth time in February, beating Al Ahly of Egypt 4-1 in the semi-final before a 5-3 defeat of Saudi Arabian side Al-Hilal, Vinícius Júnior and Federico Valverde both scoring twice and Karim Benzema once.
The holders won their first three games in this season’s UEFA Champions League, at Celtic (3-0) and at home to Leipzig (2-0) and Shakhtar Donetsk (2-1) but took only one point from their next two before finishing with a 5-1 home victory against the Scottish champions.
Madrid was again paired with Liverpool in the round of 16, a 5-2 first leg win at Anfield – the first time they had scored five goals in successive UEFA Champions League matches since 1998 – preceding a 1-0 home win.
The win at Liverpool was Madrid’s 11th in their last 21 UEFA Champions League away games, losing seven including three of the last seven.
Madrid have scored in their last 15 UEFA Champions League matches, and in all but one of the 22 since they went down 2-0 at Stamford Bridge two years ago, the exception that 1-0 defeat in Paris last season.
Benzema, who scored three times in the round of 16 against Liverpool, has 20 goals in 26 UEFA Champions League games against English clubs, his largest tally against opposition from a single nation, including seven last season to overtake his 15 goals against German sides. His first-leg goals against Liverpool were his first of this season’s competition. The Frenchman has scored 14 goals in his last nine knockout phase matches, finding the net in every game bar last season’s final.
Benzema has equalled Lionel Messi’s record of having scored in 18 consecutive seasons in the UEFA Champions League and is the first player to score in 19 successive calendar years in the UEFA Champions League (2005–2023).
Madrid’s record against English clubs is now W23 D13 L16.
Madrid’s record in two-legged knockout ties against English clubs is W12 L6. This season’s win against Liverpool made it seven aggregate victories in the last nine, although their last two UEFA Champions League eliminations have both been by Premier League opponents – Chelsea in the 2020/21 semi-finals and Manchester City in the 2019/20 round of 16.
Including the 2021/22 final, this is the seventh time Madrid have been paired with English opposition in their last eight UEFA Champions League knockout ties, and the fifth in a row.
Madrid were without an away win in six games against English clubs, a sequence that included four defeats, before last season’s first-leg victory at Chelsea but have now won the last two. Madrid’s overall away record against English clubs is W8 D5 L9.
Madrid have gone through in 48 of 61 European ties after winning the first leg at home, most recently against Liverpool in the 2020/21 quarterfinals (3-1 h, 0-0 a). When winning 2-0 at home in the first leg their aggregate record is W5 L2 with victories in the last four ties, the most recent against Bayern in the 1999/2000 semi-finals (1-2 a).
Madrid’s record in four UEFA penalty shoot-outs is W2 L2:
– 5-6 v Crvena zvezda, 1974/75 European Cup Winners’ Cup quarter-final
– 3-1 v Juventus, 1986/87 European Cup second round
– 1-3 v Bayern München, 2011/12 UEFA Champions League semi-final
– 5-3 v Atlético de Madrid, 2015/16 UEFA Champions League final