Chelsea picked up a 2-0 win over Real Madrid in the second leg of the UEFA Champions League semi-finals earlier tonight.
The Blues have now booked their place in the finals of the competition with a 3-1 aggregate win over the Spanish giants. Goals from Timo Werner and Mason Mount were enough to see them through to the next round of the competition.
Here at Anytime football, we look at the five major talking points from tonight’s contest.
Edouard Mendy – a parting gift from Frank Lampard
During this time as the Chelsea manager, Frank Lampard has made several positive contributions to the club, and one of them was the signing of Mendy.
The Frenchman has been outstanding for the Blues ever since he joined the club, and he produced a sensational performance against Real Madrid in the second leg of the semi-finals earlier tonight.
The goalkeeper seemed impenetrable, and he produced a couple of world-class saves to keep a clean sheet.
Mason Mount is Chelsea’s player of the season
The development of Mount is another positive contribution that Frank Lampard has made before his departure. The young attacking midfielder has developed into one of the most exciting players in the Premier League, and he’s arguably the best player at the club this season.
Mount produced an impressive performance over both legs, and he scored a vital goal for his side tonight. Apart from his goals and creativity, the midfielder has worked hard and helped out his teammates defensively.
N’Golo Kante is relentless
The French defensive midfielder was outstanding in the first leg, and he carried that momentum into tonight’s game as well.
Kante harassed the opposition midfielders with his tireless pressing, and the likes of Modric and Kroos barely had the chance to express themselves on the ball.
His performance in the midfield tonight was crucial to the Blues keeping a clean sheet.
Real Madrid would have been better without Sergio Ramos and Eden Hazard
Both Sergio Ramos and Eden Hazard started for Real Madrid in the must-win game tonight, but few would have expected them to drop a disastrous performance.
Ramos was clearly struggling with match fitness, and Hazard has had a forgettable spell at the Spanish club since his arrival.
Zidane’s experiment with the back three fails again
The Real Madrid manager decided to field a back three of Nacho, Ramos and Militao tonight, and his experiment failed once again. He has tried to field a similar system quite a few times this season, and it has backfired more often than not.
It is baffling that Zidane continues to employ such a system in crucial games.
The formation clearly does not play to the strengths of his key players, and Real Madrid should have stuck to their usual 4-3-3 formation tonight. Zidane’s formation tonight left Kroos in a defensive midfield role, Modric in an advanced position and Hazard in a unique role. Furthermore, Vinicius junior was used as a wingback.
All four players played in unfamiliar positions, and they struggled to deliver the goods.
