Upon arrival at Stamford Bridge, there was already a different tone to what had adorned SW6 against Brentford. A downpour, an improved atmosphere and quite simply the air of a big game. The Shed produced an impressive display as the teams lined up, but Karim Benzema soon showed Chelsea the task they would have.
The Frenchman put his side ahead with two headers as Real Madrid cut through the centre of the park with ease in the opening half and left the Blues struggling to rediscover their confidence. Kai Havertz reignited their hope with a solid header of his own from a spectacular Jorginho cross. Benzema's hat trick was complete in the 46th minute when Edouard Mendy served him the ball when aiming for Antonio Rudiger, and the former Lyon star was sure not to miss.
Chelsea controlled most of the second period as Romelu Lukaku, Mateo Kovacic, Hakim Ziyech and Ruben Loftus-Cheek all entered the field but did not often enough test Thibaut Courtois in the opposition goal. Nevertheless, the Blues faithful put on a special atmosphere for large parts of the game, though they were quietened as the final whistle approached, and Madrid's antics to slow the game down took hold.
