Luka Modric believes that Chelsea are the “most difficult team” Real Madrid have faced after the Spanish side made another late Champions League comeback to progress to the semi-finals.
Chelsea entered the match 3-1 down on aggregate, but held a 4-3 lead with 10 minutes remaining after going 3-0 ahead on the night.
Rodrygo sent the quarter-final to extra-time after volleying home a superb outside-of-the-foot pass from Modric, before in-form striker Karim Benzema scored the winner in the 96th minute.
The Croatian midfielder, 36, believed his side were close to giving up hope against Chelsea before Rodrygo’s intervention.
“For me, (Chelsea) are the most difficult team to play against. They are a tough, physical team. We knew it would be tough.
“We were dead until the goal we scored,” Modric said. “We didn’t give up. We kept believing, fighting and in the end showed huge character.
“This stadium and the fans were very helpful when we were losing 3-0. They kept supporting us and it gave us a boost to keep believing.”
“In the end we showed great character, desire and togetherness to manage to turn it around.”
Madrid will face the winner of Wednesday’s second-leg between Atletico Madrid and Manchester City in the semi-finals, which are scheduled to begin on April 27.
theathletic.com
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