Lille v Chelsea - Stade Pierre-Mauroy, Villeneuve-d'Ascq, France - March 16, 2022. Soccer Football - Champions League - Lille v Chelsea - Stade Pierre-Mauroy, Villeneuve-d'Ascq, France - March 16, 2022. Cesar Azpilicueta of Chelsea celebrates his second goal.
Reuters, LILLE, France, March 16 - Chelsea made light of their off-field issues to reach the Champions League quarter-finals on Wednesday, defeating Lille 2-1 away for a 4-1 aggregate victory.
Christian Pulisic and Cesar Azpilicueta scored for the Premier League side, who were playing under sanctions imposed on their Russian owner Roman Abramovich following Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
Lille dominated for lengthy periods and took the lead thanks to a Burak Yilmaz penalty in the first half, but lacked precision up front and paid the price for concentration mistakes.
Chelsea showed wonderful poise to stroll into the final eight despite operating under a special license from the British government that has curtailed their expenditure and damaged their operations.
"At the club, everyone is in a good mood. Football is central to the club's culture. Chelsea's priority is football, which is why we're focused on what occurs on the field "Chelsea coach Thomas Tuchel spoke to RMC Sport in France.
Lille had made a brighter start to the game at their Pierre Mauroy stadium.
Chelsea were forced on the back foot by Jocelyn Gouvennec's side, as Mateo Kovacic, Jorginho, and N'Golo Kante struggled to manage the midfield.
Lille was rewarded in the 38th minute when a VAR review resulted in a penalty for a handball in the area by Jorginho.
Yilmaz, 36, buried the spot-kick into the top corner to give the hosts a deserved lead and high hopes of an upset after losing the first leg 2-0 at Stamford Bridge. He is the third oldest scorer in the Champions League knockout stages after Paolo Maldini and Ryan Giggs.
Lille, who had not conceded a goal in three Ligue 1 games since the first leg, fell victim to Chelsea's first shot on target, as Pulisic gathered a wonderful through ball from Jorginho and scored with a low effort three minutes into first-half stoppage time.
Lille maintained greater pressure after the interval, despite injuries forcing Sven Botman and Zeki Celik to leave the field, and Yilmaz squandered two clear chances.
Chelsea was far more ruthless, as Mason Mount's cross rebounded off Azpilicueta's knee and into the top corner after 71 minutes to put an end to Lille's ambitions of reaching the final eight.
Lille was disappointed with the result after a strong performance that resulted in a win.
"I'm disappointed with the result and the fact that we didn't qualify," Amadou Onana, a midfielder, said.
"I congratulate Chelsea on their victory; they were the superior team."
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