The Blues were beaten 2-0 on the night at Stamford Bridge as poor finishing cost them any chance of turning the quarter-final around
Chelsea have been one of the stories of the season for all the wrong reasons, but on Tuesday, their story basically came to an end as they exited the Champions League at the hands of Real Madrid.
Realistically, with next to no chance of finishing in the top four this campaign, the Blues will not be in Europe's premier club competition next season, and have little to play for other than pride in the final weeks of 2022-23.
That is a sensationally poor return on the £600 million that the Blues have spent under Todd Boehly's stewardship in the past 12 months, and massive changes need to be made to fix a team who were celebrating winning the European Cup less than two years ago.
Madrid won 2-0 in the second leg as Rodrygo scored twice in the second half to double the Blancos' aggregate lead from the reverse fixture at Santiago Bernabeu.
Carlo Ancelotti's team did not have it all their own way, but Frank Lampard was left to count the cost of yet more poor finishing from his expensively-assembled team.
GOAL breaks down the winners & losers from Stamford Bridge…
WINNER: Rodrygo
The Brazil forward played hero against Chelsea in the Champions League last year, coming off the bench to grab a late goal at Santiago Bernabeu that sent the contest to extra-time.
And though his goals here weren't quite as dramatic, they were equally as important.
For the opener, Rodrygo darted down the right side, making expert use of Madrid’s one real counter-attack of the game. He opted to square the ball, but it ended up coming invitingly back to his feet, six yards from the net — a chance he simply couldn’t miss before hitting Ronaldo’s “Siuuu” celebration in front of the scowling Chelsea fans.
He was at it again 20 minutes later, simply walking the ball in after Federico Valverde set him up with a lovely winding run through four Chelsea defenders.
Karim Benzema was well short of his best on Tuesday, and Real Madrid needed a new hero to continue their Champions League exploits. Rodrygo was that man.
AdvertisementGetty ImagesLOSER: Todd Boehly
Having spent £600 million over the past 12 months, it's incredible to think that Boehly will now have no Champions League football to watch from the Stamford Bridge director's box next season.
That is a damning indictment of his first year in charge of the club, his reckless spending and poor decision-making having now left the Blues on the outside looking in at Europe's elite for at least the next year.
As if to illustrate the point, Lampard chose to leave all of Joao Felix, Mykhailo Mudryk and Raheem Sterling on the bench, instead opting for a 5-4-1 formation as the expensive flops that Boehly has brought to the club watched on from the sidelines.
Chelsea are already up against it in terms of Financial Fair Play, and so despite their riches, the lack of Champions League money next season will hurt them, and it might lead to more players leaving this summer than they would perhaps like.
Signing assets of the standard of Jude Bellingham and Victor Osimhen is probably off the table too now, and given the strength of the Premier League, there is no guarantee that Chelsea will be back in the Champions League after just one year away either.
This is set to be a long road back for Boehly's Blues, and the co-owner has to take much of the blame for that.
Getty ImagesWINNER: Thibaut Courtois
Courtois seems to produce at least one immense save every game he plays for Madrid, but his customary stop here was spectacular even for him.
Marc Cucurella had half of the goal to aim at from six yards out before Courtois scurried across his line to somehow block the Spanish defender's attempt.
After making the save, he turned to the Chelsea fans that had taunted him all night for leaving the club in acrimonious circumstances back in 2018 and kissed the Madrid badge.
Had Courtois failed to foil Cucurella’s effort, the tie could well have gone differently. A goal would have brought Chelsea within one on aggregate, and given the home side a healthy dose of optimism heading into the second half.
Instead, the Belgian knocked the life out of Stamford Bridge, and with Madrid advancing to their 11th semi-final in 13 years, there will likely be more big moments to come.
Getty ImagesLOSER: N'Golo Kante
Kante is a lot of things as a footballer, but finishing has never been his strongest attribute, and that showed at the worst possible time for Chelsea on Tuesday.
Deployed as one of the more attacking midfielders in Lampard's innovative box midfield, Kante twice find himself in prime position inside the penalty area to give the Blues the lead on the night.
And both times he failed to convert.
He first missed the Blues' first real chance, slashing at a shot when in acres of room around 10 yards from goal, with his effort slicing wide of Thibaut Courtois' left-hand post.
Kante then found himself with the goal at his mercy again early in the second half, only to crash his effort against Eder Militao, who made a block he knew almost nothing about.
Moments later, Madrid were 1-0 up on the night, and the tie was pretty much over. With his contract up this summer, we might not see Kante play in the Champions League again for the Blues.