Brilliant Bayern breeze past Chelsea in last 16 first leg

Chelsea 0-3 Bayern Munich
Goals: 0-1 Gnabry (51'), 0-2 Gnabry (54'), 0-3 Lewandowski (76')
Red card: Alonso (83')

Bayern may have been away from home but they began with their customary swagger and served notice of their intent within the first minute, when Thomas Müller forced Willy Caballero to make a save with a low shot from the edge of the box. Having started as they meant to go on, Hansi Flick’s men dominated the first half – they had 65 per cent of possession by the interval – and created a number of presentable chances, most notably for Kingsley Coman, who rustled the side netting from 18 yards, and Müller, who saw a header crash back off the crossbar. Chelsea were not without opportunities of their own, however, with Mason Mount and Oliver Giroud causing problems up front and Marcos Alonso forcing Manuel Neuer into an important save just before the break.

The match could have turned out very differently if Mount had made the most of being sent clean through early in the second half, but Davies’ incredible pace helped snuff out the danger. It proved to be a vital intervention as Gnabry soon struck twice in the space of three minutes to put Bayern firmly in the driving seat. First, he ruthlessly exploited a slip by Cesar Azpilicueta before playing a one-two with Lewandowski and side-footing home from 10 yards. The same duo combined moments later, the move starting with an exchange of passes in midfield and ending with Gnabry’s brilliantly placed shot into the far corner. The Germany international could have had a hat-trick shortly afterwards as a stunned home side struggled to regroup, but he volleyed over from Müller’s cross. It mattered little though, as Lewandowski ensured Bayern returned to Munich with a commanding lead when he tapped in from close range following a superb run and cross down the left from Davies.

• Gnabry has scored six goals in two Champions League outings in London this season, having scored four against Tottenham Hotspur in the group stage.
• Lewandowski has 11 Champions League goals this season, making him the competition’s leading scorer in 2019/20. This was his first strike in the knockout stage since a brace against Besiktas on 20 February 2018.
• The Polish striker’s overall Champions League tally now stands at 64, putting him joint-fourth with Real Madrid’s Karim Benzema in the all-time standings.
• Bayern have now claimed big wins in each of their last three Champions League trips to London, having beaten Arsenal 5-1 in March 2017 and Tottenham 7-2 in October 2019.
• Alonso (straight red) and Jorginho (accumulation of yellow cards) will both miss the second leg at the Allianz Arena.
• Chelsea have now lost their last nine knockout games in the Champions League.

Chelsea: Caballero – Azpilicueta (c) (Pedro 73'), Christensen, Rüdiger – James, Jorginho, Kovacic, Alonso – Mount, Barkley (Willian 61') – Giroud (Abraham 61')
Unused subs: Kepa, Zouma, Emerson, Gilmour
Out: Hudson-Odoi (match fitness), Kante (groin), Loftus-Cheek (match fitness), Pulisic (match fitness)
Coach: Frank Lampard

Bayern: Neuer (c) – Pavard, Boateng, Alaba, Davies – Kimmich, Thiago (Goretzka 90') – Coman (Coutinho 66'), Müller, Gnabry (Tolisso 85') – Lewandowski
Unused subs: Ulreich, Odriozola, Hernandez, Zirkzee
Out: Martinez (thigh), Perisic (ankle), Süle (torn ACL)
Coach: Hansi Flick

FULL-TIME!

To celebrate Pancake Day, Bayern have flattened Chelsea at Stamford Bridge. After showing glimpses of their attacking potential in the first half, the Bundesliga leaders slipped through the gears after the interval, with a quickfire brace from Gnabry and Lewandowski's 11th goal of the Champions League campaign putting them in firm control of this tie. Chelsea will be without Jorginho, Alonso and possibly Kante again for the return leg, where they will have to overturn a three-goal deficit and prevent Bayern from scoring at the Allianz Arena. An excellent night for Hansi Flick's side.

90'+2 BAYERN FANS ENJOYING THEMSELVES

They're the only ones we can hear at Stamford Bridge as Coutinho fires off target. I'm pretty sure they were singing "It's Coming Home" a few minutes ago.

90' BAYERN KNOCKING IT AROUND

No great urgency from Flick's side. They know the battle is won. A final change as Goretzka replaces Thiago.

85' ALABA JUST WIDE

The Austrian puts the resulting free-kick to the right of the Chelsea goal. Meanwhile Gnabry comes off to applause from both sets of fans, and is replaced by Corentin Tolisso. That's six goals in two Champions League games in London this season - not bad for a so-called West Brom flop.

83' RED CARD! (ALONSO)

Chelsea are down to 10. Following a VAR referral, Alonso has been dismissed for catching Lewandowski in the face. Hard to tell if it was intentional or not, but that's another big blow for the hosts.

81' BRILLIANT TACKLE FROM BOATENG

Bayern look determined to hold on to their clean sheet tonight. Abraham drives up the middle for Chelsea but appears caught between a pass and a shot, and Boateng makes a decisive tackle.

79' GREAT BALL FROM PEDRO

Pedro with a wicked ball across the face of goal, but Abraham fails to anticipate and another chance goes begging for the hosts.

78' LEWY BACK ON TOP

That goal means Robert Lewandowski is now the top scorer in this season's Champions League with 11 goals, one ahead of Dortmund's Erling Haaland. He has 39 in all competitions in 2019/20, which is one fewer than the Norwegian starlet. Oh, and he's now level with Karim Benzema in joint-fourth on the all-time Champions League goalscorers list (64).

76' AND LEWY MAKES IT THREE!

The goal is for the Pole but this one is all about Alphonso Davies. He comes racing through to pick up a loose ball after fine work from Coutinho, leaves Christensen for dead, and then puts it on a plate for Lewandowski, who slips in from point-blank range for his 11th of the campaign. Devastating stuff from Bayern.

74' CALL HIM USAIN DAVIES

Bayern's speed demon flies past Christensen on the left but doesn't get the cross quite right, and it goes out for a goal kick. At the other end, Willian put in a teasing delivery from the right but nobody gets on the end of it for Chelsea.

69' MOUNT WASTEFUL AGAIN

A mistake from Kimmich as he gives the ball straight to Mount, but the Chelsea man fails to punish the error, blasting over from the edge of the area.

68' CLOSE!

Müller finds himself in acres of space down the right flank, and has time to pick out a cross after cutting inside with some lovely footwork. He finds Coutinho at the back post, but the Brazilian doesn't connect properly, his attempted volley trickling agonisingly across the goal line before Chelsea get it clear.

66' COUTINHO ON

Can he help Bayern get a third?

64' COMAN INJURED?

The Frenchman is clutching the back of his thigh, and now he's down on the pitch receiving treatment, I think he'll be coming off in a moment, Coutinho is preparing to replace him. Hopefully it's nothing too serious for the Bayern No.29.

62' GNABRY HAVING A BALL

More magic feet from Gnabry on the edge of the area as he brings down a ball from Müller. He twists this way and that, but Chelsea manage to deflect his shot over for a corner.

61' DOUBLE SUBSTITUTION FOR CHELSEA

Frank Lampard rings the changes, with Tammy Abraham replacing Giroud and Willian on for Barkley.

59' GNABRY FOR THE HAT-TRICK!

But he can't keep it down! Müller makes the most of some passive defending from Chelsea to hook a ball into the middle, and Gnabry meets it on the volleys but blasts over. That could have been his seventh goal in London in this season's Champions League! Bayern running riot.

57' ALMOST A THIRD

Coman puts on the afterburners down the right and crosses from the byline, but it's behind Lewandowski, who attempts a sort of pirouette but can't get on the end of it. Bayern could be out of sight if they keep this up.

54' GOAL! GNABRY STRIKES AGAIN!

And now it's two! This is simply glorious interplay between Lewandowski and Gnabry. Lewy heads Neuer's goal kick into the path of the Gnabry, who knocks it back to him - and then another pass from the Pole and Gnabry is away, planting into the bottom corner for 2-0. Sublime from the Bayern frontmen, and Chelsea now have a mountain to climb.

51' GOAL! GNABRY PUTS BAYERN AHEAD!

Thiago wins the ball in midfield and scoops it forward for Gnabry, who steals a yard when the Chelsea player in front of him slips. He finds Lewandowski on the left side of the penalty area, and the Pole returns it with aplomb - Gnabry simply has to fire home for his fifth in the Champions League this term. Bayern have their away goal!

49' JORGINHO BOOKED

For contestation. He'll miss the second leg.

48' BRILLIANT FROM DAVIES AND NEUER

An excellent ball over the top for Mount and he's through on goal, but once again Davies shows incredible pace to get back and put the young Englishman off. The chance is still there for Chelsea, but Neuer makes himself big and clears the danger. After all that excitement, the linesman put his flag up for offside against Mount.

46' WE'RE UNDERWAY AGAIN

Will we have a goal at Stamford Bridge? In case you're interested, Napoli currently lead 1-0 at home to Barcelona in the night's other Champions League game, thanks to a Dries Mertens strike.

HALF-TIME!

As 0-0 draws go, it's been pretty entertaining. An open game with chances at both ends, although Bayern have probably edged it. Their best openings fell to Lewandowski and Müller - with the latter hitting the crossbar - but it's still all to play for in the second half. Flick's men look more than capable of getting at least one away goal. Join us again in about 15 minutes' time!

45'+1 THIAGO BOOKED

A yellow card for the Spaniard after he prevents Barkley scampering away on the counter. No Bayern players will be suspended for the second leg with a booking tonight.

43' FINE SAVE NEUER!

Alonso finds himself in a shooting position after Pavard slips, but Neuer is there to make an excellent low save, pushing the ball clear of the danger zone. A corner comes in seconds later and Alonso heads off target.

42' FREE-KICK FOR BAYERN

A rather enthusiastic, shall we say, challenge from Alonso on Coman, and Kimmich has a free-kick for Bayern out on the right. Lovely delivery, curling to the edge of the six-yard box, but Chelsea manage to deal with it.

40' BAYERN APPLYING PRESSURE

The Bundesliga side aren't giving Chelsea any breathing space at the moment, pressing high and winning the midfield battle. They've had a decent number of chances, now they need that precious away goal.

35' MÜLLER OFF THE BAR!

It's end-to-end stuff at the moment! Lewy sends in a cross from the left flank, and Müller almost scores with a backwards glancing header that bounces back off the crossbar. Only Müller would attempt a header like that...

34' CHANCE FOR CHELSEA

Neuer makes a bit of a hash of a clearance which allows Chelsea to pounce, but fortunately Giroud can't connect with Mount's low drive across the six-yard box.

29' NOW MÜLLER HAS A GO!

This isn't the kind of shot we're used to seeing from Thomas Müller - a powerful curling effort from just outside the area - but he's only a few inches away from giving Bayern the lead. Tidy effort. Flick's men starting to turn the screw here...

28' AND AGAIN!

Chelsea give possession away cheaply and Bayern swarm forward - this time it's Müller with a clever little pass up the middle for Lewandowski, but he can't quite get there and Caballero makes another important intervention. The 38-year-old - the oldest player in the Premier League - is having a good night so far.

25' LEWY CLOSE AGAIN

Davies wins another ball high up the pitch and finds Gnabry, who slips through for Lewy - but it's a tad too long and Caballero smothers it. Bayern have completed twice as many passes as Chelsea so far.

24' BARKLEY OVERCOOKS IT

Turning into an entertaining game this. Barkley appears caught in two minds with a cross intended for Giroud, but it's well in front of the Frenchman and spins out for a goal kick.

19' ALABA MOPS UP

David Alaba's turn to clear the danger for Bayern, turning James' cross behind for a corner. Giroud gets a head to the outswinging delivery, but it's an easy capture for Neuer.

18' PHENOMENAL FROM PHONZIE!

Unreal defending from Davies, who shows incredible pace to catch up to Mount - who had been superbly released by Kovacic - and shepherd the ball out of play. This kid is the real deal.

15' LEWY!

And now Bayern's top scorer has a go after a brilliant ball over the top. He catches it sweetly on the half-volley, left-footed, but Caballero gets off his line well to deflect it out for a corner. In it comes and Gnabry heads wide, the ball trickling off towards the opposite corner flag. Bayern running at about 60 per cent of possession so far. Chelsea are missing Kante in midfield.

11' COMAN!

The best chance of the game so far. The Frenchman plays a superb one-two with Müller and finds himself through on goal, but his low drive is just wide of Caballero's left-hand post and ripples the side netting. I think some of the Bayern fans thought that was in.

8' MOUNT AGAIN

Route 1 stuff from Chelsea, as Giroud heads on a goal kick from Caballero - but again Mount fails to get hold of his shot properly. At the other end Kimmich looks to whip in a cross from the right but it's overhit and sails out of play. Things have balanced out a bit over the past few minutes.

7' MOUNT WELL OVER

A first sniff for Chelsea as a long throw comes in from the right. They're looking for Giroud but it's headed clear as far as Mount, who fires high into the stands.

5' STRONG START FROM BAYERN

You wouldn't know that Flick's men are the away team, based on the first five minutes... the visitors are bossing possession, even if they are yet to properly test Caballero. Bayern playing in their traditional red strip, incidentally.

2' FIRST BLOOD BAYERN

41 seconds on the clock and a first attempt from Thomas Müller, after a nice little mazy run from Davies. Nothing to trouble Caballero though. Coman then drills a low drive in from the right, but it doesn't quite come through to Müller. Positive start from the Bavarians.

1' KICK-OFF!

We're underway at Stamford Bridge as Thiago gets the ball rolling.

TURPIN IN CHARGE

Tonight's referee is Frenchman Clement Turpin, who also officiated when Bayern thumped Tottenham 7-2 back in October. A good sign for the Bundesliga leaders?

LONDON CALLING!

Bayern have scored 12 goals on their last two visits to the English capital - can they improve on that impressive return tonight? We'll find out very shortly, as the players are emerging from the tunnel. Plenty of noise coming from the pocket of Bayern fans in one corner of Stamford Bridge.

LETHAL LEWANDOWSKI

Yeah, that guy. In case we forgot to mention it, he's scored 38 goals in 32 matches in all competitions this season, including 10 in the Champions League.

CHELSEA'S MISERABLE KNOCKOUT RECORD

Chelsea have failed to win any of their last eight knockout matches in the Champions League (D4, L4), exiting the competition at the semi-final stage in 2014 and failing to get beyond the last 16 in their last three participations (2015, 2016 and 2018).

KIMMICH: “IT’S NOT EASY TO BEAT US”

Bayern midfielder Joshua Kimmich is wary of Chelsea’s wide players, but believes the reigning Bundesliga champions have enough quality to get a positive result in London: “They have a really interesting team. A lot of talented players and experienced players, so it’s an interesting mix. They have a lot of fast players, especially on the wings, so we’ll have to pay attention and try to win the game. We have a strong team with good players and it’s not easy to beat us.”

LAMPARD EXPECTING "REALLY TOUGH" GAME

The Chelsea manager knows his side are in for a difficult evening here, despite playing on home turf. “It’s going to be tough, really tough," he told BT Sport. "We’re going to have to be at our absolute best and have the personality and belief in ourselves that we can win over two legs.”

CHELSEA UNCHANGED

Lampard has kept faith with the same 11 players who helped Chelsea get the better of Spurs over the weekend, so they will probably be deployed in the same 3-4-2-1 formation, with Mount and Barkley supporting Giroud up top. Expect James and Alonso to spend a fair amount of time getting back to defend against Coman and Gnabry.

NO SURPRISES IN BAYERN LINE-UP

Hansi Flick has gone with the starting XI we were expecting, with goal machine Lewandowski obviously leading the line. Gnabry, Müller and Coman will provide the attacking threat behind the prolific Pole, with Kimmich in midfield alongside Thiago and Alaba partnering Boateng in central defence. Three of the players in the Bayern team - Neuer, Boateng and Müller - started the 2012 Champions League final against Chelsea.

DAVIES: "MY DAD'S A CHELSEA FAN!"

Canadian wonderkid Alphonso Davies has become a first-team regular for Bayern under Hansi Flick, and played the full 90 minutes in their last three Champions League group games. However, the 19-year-old may cause an upset in the Davies household if he helps Bayern win this evening...

"My dad's always been a big Chelsea fan, and I was a fan of Didier Drogba," he revealed in kicker, Germany's leading sports specialist magazine. "But I'm pretty sure he loves me more than he does Chelsea (laughs)."

If you want him to switch allegiance, Phonzie, then perhaps a signed Lewy shirt would help sweeten the deal...

TEAM NEWS IMMINENT

We'll confirm the line-ups at Stamford Bridge tonight as soon as they land, hopefully in the next 20 minutes or so. Still time to squeeze in another pancake between now and then.

FRESHER LEGS FOR BAYERN?

Both sides warmed up for this game with league wins over the weekend, although Bayern had the advantage of playing on Friday, meaning they've had an extra day to prepare for tonight's clash. The record champions had to dig deep to see off bottom side Paderborn at the Allianz, while Chelsea beat London rivals Tottenham on Saturday to boost their top-four hopes in the Premier League.

THE EIGHT-YEAR ITCH

No Bayern fan will need (or want) reminding of the last time their club crossed swords with Chelsea in the Champions League: the infamous 2012 final at the Allianz Arena, the 'Finale Dahoam', which the Blues won on penalties to break Bavarian hearts. Even if that defeat ultimately sparked one of the most successful periods in the club's history, players like Thomas Müller - whose 83rd-minute strike looked to have Bayern on course for the trophy - won't have any trouble getting fired up for tonight's game against Frank Lampard's side.

WHY BAYERN WILL BEAT CHELSEA

We've still got a couple of hours until tonight's first leg gets underway, so while you're travelling home from work or waiting for your Shrove Tuesday pancakes, check out our five reasons why Bayern will get the better of the Blues tonight. Note: we didn't just write 'Robert Lewandowski' out five times. We could have. But we didn't.

WILKOMMEN! 

Good evening all. Strap yourselves in for another pulsating night of continental football as five-time European champs Bayern take on Chelsea at Stamford Bridge in the first leg of the Champions League round of 16. All five German teams in European action last week won their matches - can the Bavarian giants continue the flawless run in London this evening?