Chelsea three lessons learnt: Win by losing to make the UCL semis

Chelsea got the job done. In a cup, that is literally the only thing that matters. No one remembers how ugly the 2012 two legs against Benfica were. They only remember what happened next. The Blues have at least set themselves up by making the semifinals for the first time since 2014. From here, the sky is the limit. So, what lessons were learnt in this one loss that was really a win?

1. Chelsea showed they had what Juventus was lacking

Until a certain point this season, Chelsea and Juventus could have truly understood one another. Both had legends of the club as managers despite their inexperience. At times, that inexperience didn’t seem to matter. That is, of course, until it did. Chelsea and Juventus both sunk below their standards and, for Chelsea at least, it was time to stop the fall.

Juventus will also know what it feels like to play Porto in the knockout stages, as the Portuguese side blitzed their way past the Italians to set up the match against Chelsea. But how was it that Chelsea was the side to get through and not Juventus?

The “certain point” mentioned earlier is arguably the switch from Frank Lampard to Thomas Tuchel. Whether or not the changes since are just down to Tuchel or the sacking waking the squad up will be debated for years. The facts of the moment, however, are that Chelsea now has something they haven’t had in years. There is a certain steel that has been missing that is slowly returning.

Both matches against Porto were ugly. Both matches it could be argued that Chelsea was the team being controlled instead of being in control. But, through all of that, the Blues held firm against the storm in ways that Juventus simply couldn’t last round. That is why Chelsea is advancing past Porto instead of trying to explain what happened.

That grit showed up in flashes with Lampard, but it has been ever present with Tuchel. If the Blues are going to end the season in a successful way, that more than anything will be the reason.