Chelsea defeated Borussia Dortmund 2-0 to go to the Champions League quarterfinals, marking the biggest victory of Graham Potter’s tenure.
With only three victories in their previous 16 games and a 1-0 deficit following the first leg in Germany, the burden was on the Blues to turn the tie—and perhaps their season—around. For the first time since October, they succeeded in doing just that, winning both games.
It’s questionable what this means for the remainder of the season and Potter’s tenure in west London, but Raheem Sterling pulled Chelsea even before Kai Havertz, on the second attempt, converted a penalty to snap Dortmund’s 10-match winning streak and advance Chelsea to the competition’s semifinals, which they won two years ago.
Highlights: Chelsea FC 2-0 Borussia Dortmund
Potter’s post-match thoughts as Chelsea defeated Borussia Dortmund…
“There was a fantastic feeling in the dressing room. We have been through a tough period and this competition means a lot for us. We wanted to progress and get into the last eight and it sets us up for the next few weeks.
“It was important we put pressure on them and get the crowd with us. It is not easy to do because they are a top team playing with confidence.
“Credit to the players they gave everything and over the two games I thought we deserved to go through.”
Havertz: We want to keep going
“I don’t know what I was thinking but the referee let me retake the penalty. I was a bit nervous but I scored. I tried to wait and look at the keeper and the second one was a bit easier.
“The last two weeks were hard, we lost a lot of games. Tonight was important this is a big tournament and it’s the last trophy that we can win.
“We showed character and that we want to keep going.”
