Uncertainty may haunt Chelsea’s future, but for now and on the pitch, Thomas Tuchel’s side continues to play with a greater authority than it has at any previous point this season. Leading 2-0 from the first leg in the Champions League last 16, it should never have really been in danger of elimination, but it was nonetheless impressive how calm Chelsea appeared in the cauldron of Lille, winning 2–1 Wednesday for a 4–1 aggregate victory. The Blues join Manchester City, Liverpool, Real Madrid, Bayern Munich, Atlético Madrid, Benfica and Villarreal—a convincing winner over downtrodden Juventus in Wednesday’s other match—to round out the final eight.
The atmosphere at the Stade Pierre Mauroy was ferocious, and in the opening stages Lille hurled itself at Chelsea. For a time, it seemed Chelsea might be wobbling, falling behind to a 38th-minute Burak Yilmaz penalty after Jorginho had been whistled for a handball following a VAR review. But, just as an upset began to seem possible, Jorginho threaded a pass through for Christian Pulisic to equalize with what was Chelsea’s first meaningful attack of the half. The sense of control, of being able to score when it needed to, was probably illusory, but Chelsea’s character was not.
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