Champions League: Thomas Tuchel's route to European glory this season
- Albert Pearson
- 30 May 2021
A look at the route of Thomas Tuchel's Champions League triumph this season, including wins over both Madrid clubs.
Chelsea were crowned champions of Europe last night after Thomas Tuchel guided the Blues to soccer's most coveted prize.
Kai Havertz skipped past Ederson with relative ease to score what proved to be the decisive goal in Portugal.
The 1-0 victory under Thomas Tuchel means Chelsea have now won the competition on two occasions. Tuchel had to overcome his own Champions League demons after heartbreak last season with PSG coming runners-up to Bayern Munich in the competition.
Having replaced Frank Lampard as Chelsea boss, Tuchel went one further and won Europe's biggest competition. Here, we take a look at Chelsea's route to Champions League glory under the German coach.
Round of 16 vs Atletico Madrid
Tuchel arrived with Chelsea following the group phase, which they topped under Lampard, and were drawn against Atletico Madrid in the last-16. Chelsea faced an Atletico side full of confidence after sitting top of La Liga with players such as Luis Suarez and Joao Felix in fine form.
The first leg was held in Bucharest due to travel restrictions meaning Atletico would have to play their home fixture away from Spain.It gave Tuchel's men a slight advantage in the tie and that would duly show.
Chelsea dominated proceedings and kept Atletico's danger men at bay, with no shots registered on target.Chelsea controlled much of the possession but were struggling to break through a solid Diego Simeone defence.
That was until Frenchman Oliver Giroud arrived at the party and scored an acrobatic overhead kick to secure a 1-0 away win.
For the second leg fixture at Stamford Bridge, Chelsea were without some of their key men including Thiago Silva, Mason Mount and Jorginho.
However, Tuchel and Chelsea were not to be denied. Atletico started brightly and had a penalty appeal waved away, but Chelsea's dominance soon unravelled and an all important second goal was added by Hakim Ziyech in the 34th minute.
The La Liga leaders - and eventual champions - never looked like getting back into the game as Chelsea's defence stood firm. The game was well and truly put to bed in extra time following Emerson's late strike.
Quarter-final vs Porto
Porto had managed to knock out Juventus and Cristiano Ronaldo in the previous round in dramatic fashion - a result that would see Porto being touted as a potential dark horse.
Both legs of this game would be held in Seville due to travel restrictions once again - a place where Chelsea had already recorded an emphatic 4-0 win earlier on in the season.
Chelsea were coming off the back of a hammering against West Brom in the league and Tuchel's first loss as Chelsea head coach in what was a defensive disaster.
Tuchel's Blues recorded an impressive 2-0 victory in the away leg through Mount's clever finish in the first half and Ben Chilwell's individual effort late on in the second.
Chelsea survived a late comeback in the second leg despite Mehdi Taremi producing a spectacular overhead kick in the dying moments of the game.
Chelsea were now through to the Champions League semi-finals for the first time in seven years.
Semi-final vs Real Madrid
Tuchel would now have to do it against one of Europe's elite sides in the form of 13-time winners of the competition, Real Madrid.
To make the tie even more tense, Chelsea faced two of their former players in Thibaut Courtois and Eden Hazard.
The first leg was held at Real Madrid's training ground due to renovation work going on at the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium.
A Madrid side without captain Sergio Ramos, struggled with Chelsea's intensity from the off as Christian Pulisic was given the freedom to find his composure in the box and finish with ease past Courtois.
Chelsea seemed to be in control of the game in large parts, but Madrid managed to find an equaliser through talisman Karim Benzema. The score stayed that way upon the final whistle leaving it all to play for at Stamford Bridge.
Chelsea's Timo Werner (left) and Real Madrid's Sergio Ramos battle for the ball during the UEFA Champions League Semi Final second leg match at Stamford Bridge
Tuchel was now only 90 minutes away from a second successive Champions League final and it was his tactical prowess that would see his brave Chelsea side dismantle the experienced Real Madrid.
Despite having less possession, Chelsea thoroughly deserved a place in the final following a resounding 2-0 victory on the night.
Mendy did well in goal to keep out Benzema on more than one occasion, but it was Timo Werner and Mount who would grab the headlines with their goals.
Werner put the hosts ahead approaching the half hour mark with a simple finish in front of goal after Havertz had lofted the ball onto the crossbar. As Madrid pushed for an equaliser, Chelsea punished them on the break with Pulisic and Mount combining with only minutes remaining to send Cheslea through.
Chelsea had reached their first Champions League final in nine years since their historic 2012 win.
Final vs Manchester City
An all-English final was set up with Premier League champions Manchester City.Man City would arrive into the final as favourites due to their displays over PSG in the previous round, and dominance at domestic level comfortably winning the Premier League.
City were participating in the final for the first time in its history and were looking to win the only trophy to elude them in recent years.
Tuchel had previously faced Pep Guardiola twice this season, coming out victorious both times, and he was gunning for a hat-trick of wins.
The game got off to a lively affair with both sides receiving glorious chances to put them ahead, most notably through Werner.
As half-time approached, it was Tuchel's German counterpart that would break the deadlock as Mount threaded through a perfect ball for Havertz to round the keeper and finish with ease.
With a 1-0 lead at half time, Tuchel knew what it felt like to lose this final and he wasn't about to let that happen again.
The German stayed animated on the touchline throughout the final 45 minutes as Chelsea stood firm to keep City at bay.
Guardiola's side were denied penalty appeals and Chelsea survived a barrage of attacks, producing yet another defensive masterclass. Unable to find an equaliser, Chelsea and Tuchel deliver an upset to win this season's Champions League.
