April 13, (THEWILL) – Real Madrid coach, Carlo Ancelotti, ascribed his team’s Champions League comeback against Chelsea to reach the semi-finals on Tuesday night to the “magic of the Bernabeu.”
Real had a two-goal lead after the first leg at Stamford Bridge, but it was erased when Mason Mount, Antonio Rudiger, and Timo Werner scored to flip the game around and give Chelsea the aggregate lead.
However, in the final 15 minutes of the game, Rodrygo scored a remarkable late goal to force extra time, and Karim Benzema followed with another header in the extra period to continue his best season ever.
Reflecting on the turnaround, Ancelotti said: “At no stage did I think that it was over, particularly because we were playing here at the Bernabeu. It’s difficult to put it into words, but this magic spurs you on.
“It helped to give the whole team that energy boost to get through to the semi-finals … the magic of this stadium helps the players to never give in.”
After consecutive hat-tricks in recent games, Benzema’s tie-winning goal was his 38th of an increasingly stunning season, and his 12th in the Champions League alone.
Since taking over as Real’s main man from Cristiano Ronaldo in 2018, the Frenchman has flourished, with this season being his most productive to date.
His previous single-season goal total was 32 in all competitions, and you can not bet he will not hit 50 before the end of the 2021/22 season.
Ancelotti did not downplay the importance of the player in his press conference prior of the Chelsea match.
There were some concerns that Benzema had sustained an injury because he appeared to be in pain and hobbling towards the end of the game. Ancelotti, on the other hand, allayed worries, stating: “There is nothing wrong with Benzema.”
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
