Chelsea hold Real Madrid
Chelsea did reserve their best for the last, and the first leg of the Champions league against Real Madrid was a testimony as they shared a goal each, at the Alfredo di Stefano stadium in Valdebebas, on the outskirts of Madrid, here on Tuesday night.
With a dominant start and a milestone goal by Christian Pulisic, Chelsea showed its strength against their opponents in the semifinals.
Chelsea were a constant menace early on and Thibaut Courtois had already denied Timo Werner from pointblank range before Christian Pulisic darted in behind the Madrid defence and rounded the goalkeeper to open the scoring in the 14th minute.
Madrid were awoken though and Karim Benzema led the fightback, clipping the post from 20 metres then hauling
his team level with a thumping volley following Eder Militao's flick-on.
Both sides were more wary after the interval with Zinedine Zidane's men noticeably more diligent defensively. Substitute Hakim Ziyech tested Courtois from a free-kick and Toni Kroos' skidding effort fizzed just wide but a third goal in the game rarely looked like materialising.
Chelsea were well in control to hold the Spanish powerhouse to a 1-1 away draw, with Pulisic becoming the first US international to score in the tournament's last four.
Karim Benzema equalised for a lackluster Madrid squad in the first Champions League match since the controversial Super League folded last week amid widespread criticism.