Ahead of the Carabao Cup final against Liverpool on Sunday, Chelsea extended their winning run across all competitions to six games – Stamford Bridge saw their beloved team beat Lille side 2-0 with a confident display.The Lukaku-Tuchel drama continues – the German manager selected his compatriot Kai Havertz to lead upfront which turned out to be a great move. Havertz could have had a hat-trick inside the opening period – the scoreboard change came in the eighth minute from a corner kick. Heading in Hakim Ziyech’s corner, the former Bayer Leverkusen forward made the breakthrough.Lille tried to come back via Renato Sanches and lively Jonathan David breaking the lines at every opportunity but Chelsea’s defensive line reacted properly.Midway through the second half, the home team tightened their grip – N’Golo Kanté burst forward before calmly slotting through to Christian Pulisic and the American lifted the ball over the onrushing keeper Leo Jardim.Chelsea had an alarming record of four consecutive last-16 exits in this competition before winning the 2021 edition but they are no strangers to defying expectation. The Blues have won their last four Champions League games on home soil without conceding a single goal.Tuchel’s men could claim a third in Sunday’s Carabao Cup final while for their tonight’s guests this result is just an extension of their disappointing form in Ligue 1 – reigning champions of France sit 11th in the table.In Spain, Dušan Vlahović became the quickest debut goalscorer in Champions League history but it wasn’t enough for the Bianconeri to collect all three points away. Dani Parejo’s second-half goal (after some laughable man-marking from Juve’s defense) ensured that Villarreal snatched a 1-1 stalemate. After a 13-year absence, Villareal were back in the Champions League knockouts but with the opening goal timed at just 33 seconds, Villarreal endured a nightmare rebirth. Vlahović controlled the ball beautifully before thrashing an unstoppable shot into the Villarreal goal to make history.The Serbian also became the second-youngest Juventus player (after Alessandro Del Piero in September 1995) to score on their Champions League maiden performance.After the early goal, Unai Emery’s side soon had chances of their own as they pressed for an equaliser and Villarreal regained some composure. Giovani Lo Celso’s shot crashed off the bar whilst Étienne Capoue’s long-distance effort went a bit higher.Villarreal eventually did snatch a deserved equaliser as Juventus players were sitting too deep while defending. Parejo poked home the second Champions League goal of his career after a delightful through ball from Capoue. It needs to be said that half of the responsibility for the goal goes to Juve’s backline.Golazo de #Villareal. Pase fenomenal de Capoué para colocar a Dani Parejo de cara al gol. 1-1 por el momento.Gran interpretación de Parejo antes del pase, perfecto.La distracción de la defensa de Juve, terrible. pic.twitter.com/yr9zTIMIsA— Tomás✍️⚽ (@TomasRocca2) February 22, 2022 Juventus will rue their missed opportunities but overall the Bianconeri showed enough to suggest that they can capitalise on home advantage in the second leg.UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE1/8 finalsTuesdayChelsea – Lille 2-0 (1-0)/Havertz 8, Pulisic 63/Villareal – Juventus 1-1 (0-1)/Parejo 66, Vlahovic 1/Wednesday23:00: (4.20) Benfica (3.70) Ajax (1.92)23:00: (2.65) Atl.Madrid (3.05) Man.Utd. (3.05)***odds are subject to change©SofaScore
