Olivier Giroud’s overhead kick and his sixth goal of this Champions League campaign gave Chelsea a crucial 1-0 lead going into the second-leg.
The Frenchman’s effort was the only goal in Bucharest. Spain’s strict coronavirus protocols meant the game had to be played abroad.
The Blues haven’t progressed to the quarter-finals of the Champions League since 2014. But, Giroud’s goal puts them in pole position to qualify after a dominant performance.
The 34-year-old striker spoke post-match about the importance of his goal and the victory:
“I didn’t know what to think of the goal because I had no clue if I was offside or not.
“But I love overhead kicks and the away goal is very important in European competitions.
“We faced a great team but managed the game well and we were confident in our own game. Now we just need to stay focused and finish the job at home.”
A Nervous start
The visitors started nervously and almost gifted the Atletico Madrid the lead in the second minute. Goalkeeper Edouard Mendy struggled to control Marcos Alonso’s awkward backpass. Saul Niguez latched onto the ball but his touch took him too wide to trouble the goal.
Thomas Lemar then went close for the the LaLiga leaders stealing in at the back post. He connected with Luis Suarez’s cross but the French winger. But failed to get enough on the ball to convert it back towards goal.
Thomas Tuchel’s side slowly found their feet in the game and started to impose their possession game. This has been something Chelsea have become accustomed since the new boss’ arrival.
Yet they failed to carve out too many opportunities. Largely due to Diego Simeone’s men sitting back and frustrated their English opponents.
Timo Werner went closest for the Chelsea in the first half after neat interplay with Mason Mount on the left.
However, goalkeeper Jan Oblak calmly palmed the shot over the bar by the near post.
Olivier Giroud’s overhead kick
The Blues continued to dominate in the second-half with Atletico Madrid continuing to sit back and defend their penalty area.
The English side broke the deadlock in the 68th minute by the English side following a lengthy VAR check.
Olivier Giroud’s stunning bicycle kick went into the bottom left corner only to be ruled out by the referee. VAR intervened to overturn the decision because the ball was hooked backwards by Mario Hermoso.
The Spanish side had to come out and attack but they failed to record a single shot on target throughout the entirety of the match.
Instead, the advances of the Madrid side saw more chances for Chelsea on the counter-attack. The pace of Werner found him down the right side.
But, again the German failed to score with his near post strike hitting the side-netting.
Atletico Madrid retreated once more and seemed happy taking a 1-0 defeat into the second-leg on 17th March.
The result was the biggest yet for Tuchel since taking over from Frank Lampard. It means the Blues are now unbeaten in their last eight matches in all competitions.
The tough fixtures continue to come thick and fast for Chelsea. They will now prepare to face top-four rivals Manchester United at the weekend.
Atleti look to bounce back from two consecutive defeats to maintain their lead at the top of La Liga. They face Villarreal on Sunday evening.
