Stamford Bridge was the place where Porto visited Chelsea in another Champions League quarter final. We got the player ratings.
Chelsea’s away defeat against Porto at Do Dragao Stadium last week was all Thomas Tuchel needed in order to protect the result. This Blues’ side seems eerily similar to the one that won the 2012 edition in a wildly defensive proposal. If the other clubs from the same bracket don’t keep their guard up, this Chelsea side might beat them in the semifinal. Today, they didn’t struggle much to protect that two-goal advantage they had.
With a five-player defense, Thomas Tuchel had a clear plan from the start of the match. He didn’t care one bit about scoring more goals, all he wanted was that result. Roman Abramovich is a pragmatic man who only cares about how far his teams can get in any tournament. As a German himself, Tuchel understood this language to perfection.
Taremi scores a work of art.
After the break, Porto got more involved in the attacking creation because Chelsea allowed them to keep ball possession. It was pretty clear they would have a number of chances that could allow them to get back in the game. But Tuchel calculated all the risks and he always kept the five-men defense strong. Near the end of the match, we saw a beautiful overhead kick goal from Taremi that came too late for the Portuguese side.
Nanu set him up with a gorgeous cross and Porto scored the goal. In the end, the Blues get through to the semifinal thanks to this pragmatic way of playing football. This style has nothing to do with the style Tuchel had when he coached PSG. He does what he can with what he is given. Results reign supreme at Chelsea.
Player ratings
Chelsea: Mendy (7), Azpilicueta (7), Rudiger (7), Silva (7), Chilwell (7), James (7), Kante (7), Jorginho (7), Mount (6), Havertz (6), Pulisic (6).
Bench: Ziyech (6), Giroud (6).
Porto: Marchesin (6), Pepe (5), Mbemba (6), Manafa (6), Sanusi (6), Uribe (6), Otavio (6), Grujic (6), Oliveira (5), Marega (5), Corona (5).
Bench: Taremi (8), Nanu (7), Diaz (5), Evanilson (5), Vieira (5).
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