Real Madrid, Chelsea play out a 1-1 draw in semi-final first leg

Chelsea's Christian Pulisic secured the all-important away goal for his side.

Premier League side Chelsea and La Liga's Real Madrid played out an enthralling 1-1 draw in the first leg of the Champions League semi-final at Alfredo di Stefano Stadium in Spain. Chelsea's Christian Pulisic secured the all-important away goal for his side in the 14th minute, as the visitors remained in control throughout the first half, keeping Madrid at bay. Madrid came back level in the second half courtesy a brilliant Karim Benzema goal. With the away goal advantage, Chelsea have the upper hand when Madrid come visiting to the Stamford Bridge next week.

Chelsea coach Thomas Tuchel said the game should have been done and dusted in the first half. "I have a feeling we should have won the first half and we could have perhaps decided this game in the first half an hour when we were playing so strong," Tuchel said, reported Reuters. "The second half was a tactical game and you could feel we only had two days in between two away games which made it physically and mentally demanding and you could feel it in the decision making. We suffered a bit and an extra day would have been nice."

Real Madrid coach Zinedine Zidane told reporters after the match: "We struggled a bit for the first 25-30 minutes, but then we improved and were much better in the second half and had control. We are happy what we did in the game overall."