Chelsea will need overturn a two-goal deficit at Stamford Bridge in six days' time after being humbled by Real Madrid on Wednesday night.
The holders won the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final 2-0 at the Bernabeu. Frank Lampard's side were completely outplayed during the first half - with Karim Benzema scoring - and they were lucky to go into the break just one-goal down.
Things didn't get much better for Chelsea during the second half, as Marco Asensio came off the bench to find the net. Here are the main talking points on a tough night for the struggling Premier League side.
Failing Felix
Chelsea almost made a dream start to the tie when Joao Felix got in behind the defence in the second minute. With just Thibaut Courtois to beat, the on-loan star stuttered before unconvincingly firing an effort straight at the former Chelsea goalkeeper.
Atletico Madrid signed Felix from Benfica in a £113million deal during the summer of 2019. Quite simply, a £113m forward should be scoring that opportunity. That was as close as Felix got at the Bernabeu, as the Portuguese was subbed off in the 65th minute.
Felix's Chelsea record is now two goals in 13 games. That is not good enough.
Benzema delivers again
What did you make of Chelsea's performance? Let us know in the comments below!
Cometh the hour, cometh the man. How many times as that idiom been chucked at Benzema? The Ballon d'Or holder broke the deadlock with a predictable strike in the 21st minute, a goal that reminded Lampard's side of the task in front of them.
Dani Carvajal, who frequently stepped into the middle of the park, took advantage of Chelsea's muddled midfield by running into the space and chipping a lovely pass into Vinicius Junior's feat. The Brazilian was denied by Kepa Arrizabalaga... but Benzema wasn't.
Benzema now has 90 goals in the Champions League, with 20 of those coming against English teams. He's some player, that lad.
Where's the net?
Only six teams have scored fewer goals than Chelsea in the Premier League this season. Felix's wasted opportunity in the second minute personified that damning statistic... and so did Raheem Sterling's missed effort shortly after Benzema's opener.
The England international was denied by Courtois from point-blank range. In fairness to Courtois, it was a superb save - yet Sterling should've scored from that distance. Gianfranco Zola, at 56, has more chance of scoring than Chelsea's current crop of flops.
Chelsea's vulnerable defence
It's never a good thing when a team is bad at scoring AND defending. Sadly for Chelsea, that is their reality. Lampard's side were torn to shreds by Real during the first half, with the hosts boasting 60 per cent possession and having eight shots on target.
Real almost doubled their lead when Vinicius easily got the better of Wesley Fofana. The Brazilian dinked the ball over Arrizabalaga, with a brilliant clearance from the returning Thiago Silva - who has recovered from a knee injury - saving the day.
Despite being 38, Silva is still Chelsea's best defender by some distance. As for Fofana, the 22-year-old looks out of his depth at this level. The same could be said about Kalidou Koulibaly. No wonder Napoli are 16 points clear at the top of Serie A without him.
Koulibaly's night was ended after he managed to beat Rodrygo in a sprint. The Senegalese star limped out of the game shortly after that and was replaced by Marc Cucurella, a defender who makes Trent Alexander-Arnold look like prime Paolo Maldini.
Cucurella was left exposed after being dragged out of position by Rodrygo, allowing the Brazilian to turn in behind and latch on to Federico Valverde's ball over the top. Ben Chilwell tried to cover Cucurella but could only bring Rodrygo to the ground.
Chilwell immediately started walking towards the dressing room, as he accepted his inevitable red card. Cucurella owes the England international an apology. Real, meanwhile, took advantage of the extra player when Asensio scored an easy goal.
Lampard already in trouble
It's now two defeats from two games for Lampard, who - as expected - is yet to revive Chelsea's campaign. The ex-midfielder was first sacked by the Blues after an indifferent one-and-a-half-season spell, while his one-year stint at Everton was a largely painful affair.
Lampard does not have the CV to manage in the Champions League. He barely has one to manage in the Championship. It's staggering that he was given another shot at the Chelsea job and shows how little the club's custodians know about building a football team.
Chelsea will still be a Premier League club next season; they will still have thousands of fans rushing to Stamford Bridge every other week. Yet it's hard to imagine them competing for silverware in the near future, especially under a hopeless Lampard.
Chelsea's chair Todd Boehly told fans "the future is bright" before the game, as he foolishly predicted a 3-0 win for his club. In reality, Chelsea's immediate future is bleak.
