Chelsea beat Dortmund to advance to quarter-finals

LONDON (AP) — This may be remembered as the moment Chelsea manager Graham Potter began to turn the tide.

The strategist arrived at Tuesday’s game against Borussia Dortmund surrounded by doubts over his future. Now he has his team in the Champions League quarter-finals.

Kai Havertz catapulted Chelsea into the top eight, relieving Potter.

A penalty kick taken twice by the German national team secured the London side’s 2-0 victory over Borussia Dortmund at Stamford Bridge on Tuesday.

Under the watchful eye of co-owner Todd Boehly, a celebration rarely seen in a gray campaign has erupted.

Chelsea advanced 2-1 on aggregate, having lost 1-0 in the first leg of the round of 16 in Germany last month.

“We’ve been through a tough time, and this competition means a lot to us,” Potter said. “We wanted to qualify for the round of 16, and that encourages us for the next few weeks.”

There were certainly positives for Potter after the most important victory of his budding tenure.

His team not only showed character to bounce back from the first leg setback, but they did so by scoring two goals in one game, something they failed to achieve in 2023.

Raheem Sterling put the 2021 European champions ahead 43 minutes into the second leg, taking advantage of a Ben Chilwell cross.

Havertz had already shaken a post in the first half. A game in which he appeared to score was ruled out for offside.

And he thought he had missed another chance, smashing his 11-foot shot into a stick after Marius Wolf handled a ball with his hand in the box.

However, the shot was ordered again, as VAR detected that the players had invaded the area before they should.

Havertz, whose goal helped Chelsea win 1-0 against Manchester City in the final two years ago, put the ball back on the spot. Serenity, he converted on his second chance at 53 years old.

“I don’t know what I was thinking, but the referee allowed me to take the penalty again,” Havertz said. “I was a bit nervous but I scored. I tried to wait and watch the goalkeeper. The second was a bit easier.

Potter admitted he was unable to observe the second penalty.

A 12-match streak in which he had just two wins raised more doubts about his future. And the elimination of the “Champions” would have prompted more criticism of his management.

Dortmund midfielder Jude Bellingham called the decision to retake the penalty a “joke”. Instead, manager Edin Terzic resisted the temptation to criticize the referees.

“It was fair play for Chelsea, congratulations,” he said. “Both games were very close for both teams, but in the end they deserved it.”