Karim Adeyemi scored a stunning solo goal to see Chelsea beat Borussia Dortmund in their Champions League last 16 first leg tie.
The Premier League side ruefully missed the chance as Joao Felix fired over a well-positioned shot and then hit the crossbar in the first half.
Reece James also forced two fine saves from Dortmund goalkeeper Gregor Koble in the second half as the visitors grew in confidence against the hosts, who struggled to create many chances themselves.
But Chelsea hit back on the counter midway through the second period when Adeyemi broke inside his own half following a Chelsea corner and knocked the ball past Kepa Arrizabalaga before heading into an empty net.
Chelsea, to their credit, pushed for an equalizer and Emre Can swept the ball just wide of the goal line as Kalidou Koulibaly’s deflected strike looked certain to find its way into the net.
Enzo Fernandez looked to have equalized in the dying seconds of stoppage time but his goalbound long-range strike was brilliantly saved by Kobel as Dortmund held off.
Defeat leaves Graham Potter’s side tasked with overturning the tie when the sides meet at Stamford Bridge on March 7.
Chelsea’s positive display was undone by familiar attacking problems.
Chelsea brought in eight new players during a busy January, yet this was another match that exposed their inability to sign an out-and-out striker.
Three of the Blues’ big-money signings started the game – Michalo Modric, Fernandez and Felix – with others ineligible due to Champions League restrictions on the number of players added to the squad after the group stage.
These three certainly add to the quality of Chelsea’s squad but none have been able to answer their goalscoring problems so far.
Felix was outstanding in the first half in Germany and looked the most likely to win as he got into a number of good positions, but failed to capitalize.
It took almost an hour for Chelsea to manage a shot on target – when James’ free-kick was brilliantly saved. Dortmund weren’t much better, but showed a clinical touch as Adeyemi broke, powered past Fernandez and then Capa before netting.
The traveling fans were left disappointed – as Chelsea were the better side against the hosts who had won their last six games.
Chelsea have not scored twice in a game since the start of November, which shows the extent of their task in the return leg until things improve significantly in the final third.
