Ian Wright says Mason Mount and the rest of the Chelsea side will "be back" in the Champions League after their valiant performance in the 5-4 aggregate defeat against Real Madrid in the quarter-finals.
Mount, 23, was back to his very best in the Santiago Bernabeu and only took 15 minutes to carry on his renewed form from the weekend's win against Southampton as he finished expertly across Thibaut Courtois after a Timo Werner ricochet fell his way nicely. Despite his and the other two goals legitimately scored on the night, to the annoyance of Marcos Alonso and Thomas Tuchel, Rodrygo's and Karim Benzema's magic ensured Carlo Ancelotti's side didn't throw away all their good work from the first leg in the end.
"Not only today...it is like this. Maybe I get myself into a problem. But if you play Real Madrid, you cannot expect that everyone has the courage [to make decisions]. I also felt the little decisions in the first leg and the second leg today," Tuchel said on the refereeing decisions across the two legs in his press conference. "I did not see the goal, but I told him that I was super disappointed that he does not come out and check it on his own.
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"In a match like this where you have a certain line to whistle, you should stay the boss and not give decisions like this to somebody in a chair who is isolated from the atmosphere and from the way how a referee – he has a certain style and certain things that he allows and does not allow, and he follows a certain line – so I think he should stay in charge and check it on his own then he could also explain it better.
"It is just my opinion. I thought we deserved more minutes in the end because it felt like we had no minutes to play in the second half of the extra time. Maybe it is too much to ask for in matches like this against this opponent. We had it in our hands, and we were not lucky enough. It is like this."
Los Blancos will now face either Atletico Madrid or Man City in the semi-finals, but for the Blues, all that is left to play for is the FA Cup -starting with the semi-final against Crystal Palace up next - and a top-four spot in the Premier League that would ensure more Champions League action next season.
Mount was one of the highest scorers on the night in football.london's player ratings as his few remaining doubters were silenced once again. His rating read: 'The academy graduate came into this game with his confidence restored after scoring twice and registering an assist. So it was perhaps no surprise that when the first clear opportunity of the game fell to Mount, he took it with aplomb to beat Thibaut Courtois from the edge of the box.
'Mount then delivered an inch-perfect corner in the second half, from which Rudiger powered his header home to bring Chelsea level in the tie. The Blues then went ahead through Werner but were not able to hold onto their lead as Real Madrid turned things around in extra time. 8'
It wasn't just the ratings that reflected his own performance. Arsenal icon Ian Wright had his say on the attacking midfielder individually and Chelsea as a collective under the 23-year-old's Instagram post.
Mount said: "We were resilient tonight and proved our might. We just fell short but remain Chels through and through." Alongside a lot of the Chelsea players who were quick to send messages to the Three Lions international, Wright sent an emotive message whilst also making an exciting prediction for the future of the west London club regarding their Champions League status and pedigree.
His comment read: "Did yourself and the club proud Mase. Small margins. You'll be back here [red heart emoji]."
