London, May 6 (IANS) Chelsea set up an all-England Champions League final against Manchester City as Timo Werner and Mason Mount settled their last four second leg tie against Real Madrid.
Werner headed in from almost on the goal-line after Germany team-mate Kai Havertz hit the bar and Chelsea spurned several chances before Mount secured a 2-0 victory, DPA reports.
Following last week’s 1-1 draw in the first leg in Madrid, the win on Wednesday was enough for Chelsea to reach a first Champions League final since they lifted the trophy in nine years ago.
It also returns manager Thomas Tuchel to the final after he lost the showpiece last season with Paris Saint-Germain against Bayern Munich.
Tuchel has turned Chelsea’s season around since his appointment in late January as replacement for Frank Lampard with a top four berth in the league looking likely.
And they will not fear domestic champions-elect City in Istanbul on May 29 having already defeated Pep Guardiola’s otherwise all-conquering side in the FA Cup semis to set up a final with Leicester City two weeks before their big day in Turkey.
Chelsea and City also meet in a dress rehearsal in Manchester on Saturday where the hosts can confirm the Premier League title if they win the match.
“I can’t put it into words at the moment,” a delighted Mount told BT Sport. “It was a great performance. We should have had about five, but the most important thing is that we won.
“I haven’t won anything yet, but we have two massive cup finals, and hopefully we can win. The final is going to be a stunning game.”
Tuchel transforming Chelsea mid-season will spark memories of Roberto Di Matteo doing so after his appointment in March 2012, months before Chelsea stunned Bayern in Munich to lift their only title in the tournament.
“We deserved to win,” Tuchel said. “We could have scored so much earlier, so much more to be safe, but now is no time for criticism.
“It is a fantastic achievement and big congratulations to the team.
“It is not done yet, we want to go all the way, we arrive in Istanbul to win.”
N’Golo Kante surged through the midfield to set up the 28th minute opener and though Havertz’s delicate chip landed on the bar, Werner couldn’t miss the rebound.
Karim Benzema, who scored for Real in the first leg, was twice denied by Edouard Mendy as the guests showed a rare bit of urgency. Other Zinedine Zidane’s side limped to defeat and ended their coach’s previous perfect record in Champions League semi-finals.
When Kante won the ball in midfield and released Christian Pulisic, the American crossed for Mount five minutes from time and Real were done.
“We can say that yes, they deserved the win,” Zidane told Movistar. “We fought and tried but they deserved to win and go through.
“I’m proud of my boys: we tried, we have got this far – just one game from the final.”
The second half had been a string of Chelsea chances as the Real defence, even with the influential Sergio Ramos back from a three-month absence due to a calf injury, frequently in tatters.
Havertz and Mason Mount both struck the bar while only one-on-one saves by Thibaut Courtois on Havertz and Kante kept Real’s outside chance alive a little longer.
Chelsea were rarely troubled in reaching their third final with the first lost against the other Manchester side, United in 2008, in Moscow.
And Real, 13-time record champions of Europe, will now try to salvage their season by emerging on top of a four-way battle for the Spanish domestic title.
–IANS
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