Villarreal, Real Madrid make Champions League semifinals

1 / 2
Villareal players celebrate at the end of the Champions League second leg quarterfinal football match between Bayern Munich and Villareal at the Allianz Arena, in Munich, Tuesday, April 12, 2022. (AP)
2 / 2
Real Madrid's French forward Karim Benzema, center, celebrates with teammates after scoring a goal during the UEFA Champions League quarterfinal second leg match against Chelsea at the Santiago Bernabeu stadium in Madrid on April 12, 2022. (AFP)
Short Url
Updated 13 April 2022
Follow

Villarreal, Real Madrid make Champions League semifinals

  • Madrid played in the semifinals eight straight seasons before consecutive round-of-16 eliminations in 2018 and 2019
  • Unai Emery's Villarreal are into the semifinals for the first time since 2006 and will play either Liverpool or Benfica in the last four

MUNICH, MADRID: Villarreal dumped Bayern Munich out of the Champions League on Tuesday, Samuel Chukwueze's 88th-minute strike at the Allianz Arena giving the Spaniards a 1-1 draw in the second leg of their quarterfinal tie that took them through 2-1 on aggregate.

Robert Lewandowski had put Bayern ahead on the night to level the tie on aggregate after Villarreal's 1-0 first-leg win, and extra time loomed until Chukwueze struck.

The result means Bayern Munich exit the Champions League in the quarterfinals for the second year running.

Villarreal are into the semifinals for the first time since 2006 and will play either Liverpool or Benfica in the last four. The English side take a 3-1 lead into Wednesday's second leg at Anfield.

Unai Emery's Villarreal soaked up everything Bayern threw at their defense, aside from Lewandowski's strike early in the second half.

It was a heartbreaking night for Bayern, who dominated for most of the match before Chukwueze scored just four minutes after coming on.

Bayern started with urgency, but the Villarreal defense was alert to every threat.

Bayern coach Julian Nagelsmann changed formation, opting for a three-man defense instead of a back four.

Villarreal were pinned in their own half for most of the first half as Benjamin Pavard, Dayot Upamecano and Lucas Hernandez dictated play from the back.

Yet for all their domination of possession, a header by Jamal Musiala straight at Villarreal goalkeeper Geronimo Rulli was Bayern's only clear chance of a goalless first half.

Lewandowski, who was largely well marshalled, earned the first booking of the game.

The Villarreal back four worked tirelessly throughout, but leftback Pervis Estupinan had a particularly busy first half as Leroy Sane constantly probed down the flank.

Bayern finally broke the deadlock in the 52nd minute.

A loose pass out of defense only got as far as Kingsley Coman, who moved the ball to Thomas Mueller.

The Germany star slipped the ball into the path of Lewandowski, who managed to get his shot past two defenders and the diving Rulli.

The Poland striker let out a primal scream to celebrate his 13th goal in 10 Champions League games this season.

Bayern kept up the pressure as Mueller went close with a diving header and was left with his head in his hands, as was Coman when he fired over soon after.

Nagelsmann sent on some fresh legs in a bid to get a decisive second goal inside the 90 minutes by bringing on Serge Gnabry and Alphonso Davies.

However, Villarreal stunned the home crowd when Gerard Moreno broke down the left.

He put in a low cross which Chukwueze sent spinning over Neuer to send the Spaniards through.

Benzema strikes again as Real Madrid fend off Chelsea comeback

Chelsea’s title defense in the Champions League ended despite a 3-2 win against Real Madrid on Tuesday, with Karim Benzema spoiling the English team's comeback by scoring in extra time to put the Spanish powerhouse back into the semifinals.

Benzema had scored a hat trick in the first leg to give Madrid a 3-1 lead, then got the decisive goal at the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium with a header off a cross by Vinicius Junior six minutes into extra time.

The hosts had looked beaten after going down 3-0 in regulation, but substitute Rodrygo evened the aggregate score in the 80th and Madrid found a way to reach the last four for the 10th time in the last 12 seasons.

Chelsea had overpowered Madrid early and built a lead through goals by Mason Mount in the 15th, Antonio Rüdiger in the 51st and Timo Werner in the 75th.

Madrid will next face either Manchester City or Atletico Madrid, which play on Wednesday in the Spanish capital with City defending a 1-0 lead from the first leg.

The loss will add to Chelsea’s off-the-field turmoil amid the forced sale of the club after sanctions in Britain against oligarch owner Roman Abramovich following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Chelsea sit in third place in the Premier League, five points clear of Tottenham in the final Champions League place with a game in hand.

Chelsea had eliminated Madrid 3-1 on aggregate in last year's semifinals en route to their second Champions League title.

The defending champions looked the more dangerous team during most of the match but both sides had opportunities in a high-intensity encounter that went back-and-forth toward the end of regulation.

Chelsea’s American substitute Christian Pulisic had two good chances for a decisive goal in stoppage time but couldn’t capitalize on them. The visitors also had a couple of opportunities later in extra time as they pushed for a goal that would take it to penalties.

The English side got a dream start when Mount opened the scoring after quick touches by Ruben Loftus-Cheek and Werner caught the Madrid defense off guard and left the forward with an easy shot from inside the area.

The visitors got the second with a firm header by Rüdiger off a corner by Mount, and they thought they had another in the 62nd after Marcos Alonso scored from inside the area, but the goal was called back after video review because of a handball.

Instead, the third goal came when Werner scored from close range after a nice move to go past defenders in front of the net, but Madrid roared back five minutes later with a volley by substitute Rodrygo. It was set up by an exquisite pass by Luka Modric with the outside of his boot after Chelsea captain N’Golo Kante gave the ball away with a bad pass near the sideline.

Former Chelsea goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois had made a good save to deny an attempt by Kai Havertz a few moments earlier.

Benzema, who struck a header off the crossbar in the 66th, had been mostly contained as Madrid struggled to move the ball into attack and kept giving Chelsea opportunities.

Madrid couldn’t play at the Bernabeu in the semifinals against Chelsea last year because the venue was undergoing major renovation work. Instead, the first leg was at the small Alfredo Di Stefano Stadium in the club’s training center, a match that ended 1-1 before Chelsea won 2-0 in London.

Madrid played in the semifinals eight straight seasons before consecutive round-of-16 eliminations in 2018 and 2019. The loss in 2019 came against Ajax and was the last time Madrid were eliminated after winning the first leg. They were stunned 4-1 at home after a 2-1 win in the first match.

Madrid had stunned Paris Saint-Germain in the round of 16 this season behind a second half hat trick by Benzema in the second leg at the Bernabeu.

Chelsea eliminated Lille 4-1 on aggregate in the last 16.


San Antonio Spurs extend domination of NBA-best Thunder

Updated 26 December 2025
Follow

San Antonio Spurs extend domination of NBA-best Thunder

  • After roaring to a 24-1 start, the Thunder have dropped four of their past six games — three of those losses coming to the Spurs
  • Houston’s Amen Thompson scored 26 points to lead the Rockets over the host Los Angeles Lakers 119-96
  • At New York, Jalen Brunson scored 34 points to lead the host Knicks over Cleveland 126-124

NEW YORK: Reigning champion Oklahoma City have the NBA’s best record, but they cannot beat San Antonio, with superstar Victor Wembanyama coming off the bench Thursday to help lift the Spurs to an emphatic 117-102 victory.

De’Aaron Fox scored a game-high 29 points while Wembanyama had 19 points and 11 rebounds in 26 minutes and guard Stephon Castle added 19 points for the Spurs, who stretched their win streak to eight games.

“My first Christmas game,” Fox said. “It feels great getting another victory.”

After roaring to a 24-1 start, the Thunder have dropped four of their past six games — three of those losses coming to the Spurs.

“When you play a team of this caliber, the details are much more magnified,” Spurs coach Mitch Johnson said. “We did a phenomenal job as the game progressed adhering to those nuances.”

Wembanyama wouldn’t call it a statement win for the season but he says the Spurs have learned from beating the Thunder.

“I’m not really sure it’s smart to think so far into the future,” said Wembanyama.

“This is like a playoff series. We played them three times in 10 days so we learned a lot on the technical side.”

Oklahoma City lost for the first time in 15 home games this season despite 22 points by reigning NBA Most Valuable Player Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.

The Thunder sank their first seven shots to take an 18-12 lead but the Spurs closed the first quarter on an 11-0 run for a 41-36 edge and never looked back.

“The guys were working their butts off,” Johnson said.

The Spurs improved to 23-7, second in the Western Conference behind the Thunder at 26-5.

Fox made 12-of-19 shots from the floor, 3-of-4 from three-point range.

“He was carrying us a little bit,” Wembanyama said. “He’s a guy who can make things happen.”

The Spurs have not reached the playoffs since 2019 and have not won a playoff series since 2017.

In other games, Houston’s Amen Thompson scored 26 points to lead the Rockets over the host Los Angeles Lakers 119-96.

Kevin Durant added 25 points and Alperen Sengun had 14 points and 12 rebounds for Houston.

“We wanted to come out here and play with a sense of urgency for 48 minutes,” Durant said. “The basketball world is watching you tonight.”

Luka Doncic led the Lakers with 25 points while four-time NBA MVP LeBron James added 18 points.

James, the NBA’s all-time scoring leader, played in his 20th NBA Christmas contest, his holiday record falling to 11-9.

Lakers guard Austin Reaves had 12 points in 15 minutes before leaving with left calf soreness.

Knicks outlast Cavs

At New York, Jalen Brunson scored 34 points to lead the host Knicks over Cleveland 126-124.

The Cavaliers, led by Donovan Mitchell’s 34 points, grabbed a 103-86 lead with 10:25 remaining but New York closed on a 40-21 run to seize the victory.

Benson, who hit 6-of-12 from three-point range, lifted the Knicks ahead for good at 121-119 on a three-pointer with 65 seconds remaining.

It was Benson’s 90th 30-point game as a Knick, a total eclipsed only by Patrick Ewing and Carmelo Anthony.

Jordan Clarkson added 25 points off the New York bench.

At San Francisco, Stephen Curry scored 23 points despite shooting 6-of-18 overall and 2-of-10 from three-point range to lead Golden State over Dallas 126-116.

“Didn’t shoot it well but we got a great win,” Curry said. “Just focused on the details of what this team can do to win.”

Seven Warriors scored in double figures with Jimmy Butler contributing 14 points, nine rebounds and nine assists.

The Mavericks’ 19-year-old forward Cooper Flagg, the second-youngest NBA Christmas starter after 18-year-old James in 2003, scored a game-high 27 points.

Dallas star Anthony Davis exited after playing only 11 minutes with what appeared to be a groin injury.

Dallas guard Klay Thompson scored seven points in a return to the Bay Area, where he helped Golden State capture four NBA titles.