Chelsea's run of wretched results continued as they were unable to translate chances into goals against Borussia Dortmund. Karim Adeyemi's solo effort in the second half was the defining moment of an entertaining affair though and hands the German side a 1-0 advantage heading into the return leg.
Despite playing sucker punch football in the opening 45 Chelsea still created the better chances but were once again profligate in front of goal, Joao Felix missing two glaring opportunities. In and end-to-end contest the yellow wall was there to roar on Dortmund throughout.
The 77,000 home fans were send into pandemonium when Adeyemi sprinted the length of the pitch, past Enzo Fernandez and past Kepa Arrizabalaga to slot home the winning goal. Edin Terzic has his goalkeeper Gregor Kobel to thank for several brilliant stops late on too with Emre Can also clearing up a Kalidou Koulibaly effort on goal too.
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Despite the improvement in attacking play and incisive passing the same issues remain for Chelsea. They were unable to find the net when it mattered and managed to come away from a game the stats will say they deserved to at least draw, with a loss.
Here, football.london rounds up the wider media reaction to the affair.
Jonathan Liew writes: "So, that plan. Everyone wants to see the plan, to see the world in a grain of sand, to see the nuts and bolts of a sophisticated modern footballing philosophy in a promising 15-minute spell either side of the break. The truth is, there is no plan yet. Just the kind of mid-tempo chaos you get when you are still at the thick end of one of the most audacious experiments ever seen in elite football. The bottom line is that Chelsea still can’t keep the ball and they still can’t keep it out. Everything else is bubbling test tubes and incomplete data.
"There were 21 shots in the 1-0 defeat at Dortmund, which is at least something. João Félix probably should have had a couple of goals, Gregor Kobel made several fine saves for the hosts and, naturally for a Graham Potter team, the xG was off the charts. You might even argue that this was the sort of game Chelsea deserved to win. All the same, they keep failing to win them, largely because they keep doing the sort of things that teams do when they have no map, no structure to fall back on, no collective consciousness to drag them through the tough bits.
Joe Krishnan writes: "Chelsea head coach Graham Potter will be facing more questions about his future after watching his side miss several chances to score in their 1-0 defeat to Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League last-16 first leg. The Blues came away from Germany empty-handed, despite spending most of the game on top, and face an uphill task ahead of the return fixture.
"After blanking against Liverpool and Fulham and a disappointing 1-1 draw with West Ham last time out, Potter would have welcomed the chance to concentrate on the Champions League as they faced their Bundesliga opponents for the first time in history.
"But his side succumbed to another defeat thanks to Karim Adeyemi's solo strike in the 64th minute, with Dortmund buyoed by the deafening Yelllow Wall. Chelsea have now lost eight games from their last 15 under Potter's management, despite a £323million investment in January which saw three new attackers brought in. And their failure to score once again will give Potter more questions to answer."
Ben Fleming writes: "Borussia Dortmund snatched a 1-0 victory over Chelsea in their Champions League round of 16 first leg courtesy of Karim Adeyemi’s 63rd-minute goal to stretch their winning run to seven matches in all competitions this year.
"Germany international Adeyemi sprinted more than 60 metres and slotted home against the run of play to give his team the advantage going into the return leg in London on March 7.
"Big-spending Chelsea’s efficiency in front of goal has been an issue for the Premier League club this season with only one win in 2023, and it was evident again. They missed a number of good chances, including hitting the woodwork through Joao Felix but failed to find an equaliser with Dortmund keeper Gregor Kobel denying Enzo Fernandez in stoppage-time."
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