Borussia Dortmund head coach Edin Terzic acknowledged his side were fortunate to defeat Chelsea – but saw little reason to apologise for a fortuitous Champions League victory.
Chelsea dominated at the Signal Iduna Park but Karim Adeyemi's ruthless 63rd-minute strike ensured Dortmund will head back to Stamford Bridge on March 7 with a slender 1-0 lead in the last-16 tie.
Joao Felix twice spurned gilt-edged chances in the first half before Adeyemi broke away from a Chelsea corner to round Kepa Arrizabalaga and earn Dortmund a rare win over English opposition on Wednesday.
It marked the Bundesliga side's first win against an English team in European competition for 11 games, their last such victory against Tottenham in March 2016.
Terzic pinpointed Gregor Kobel, who made a personal Champions League record seven saves, as the difference as Dortmund rode their luck to snatch the advantage at the halfway point in the two-legged affair.
He told DAZN: "It's great to come out on the winning side.
"There was a little bit of luck involved and we had an exceptional goalkeeper.
"But there's no need to apologise after winning at home against Chelsea in the last 16.
"What we really needed was longer periods of possession. We won the ball well in midfield a lot, but then gave it away again too cheaply.
"There were a lot of good things, too – the best of which is the result – but we know it's not easy to play against Chelsea and we took a good step tonight."
Chelsea registered 21 shots to Dortmund's 14, with the Blues finding the target with eight of those compared to the hosts' two.
Graham Potter's men amassed an expected goals tally of 2.14 to Dortmund's 1.41 as well, suggesting Chelsea had higher quality chances, albeit they were unable to find a decisive strike.
While Kobel kept his 11th clean sheet in 23 games in all competitions this term, one more than the whole of last season (10 in 40 matches), Terzic felt Dortmund handed Chelsea the initiative too often.
"I feel like we defended our goal well but made it a little too easy for them to get into the final third at times," he added.
"If you saw how often we threw ourselves into challenges, how many shots we blocked, Chelsea have an incredible quality up front.
"But Gregor Kobel is in incredible form and we know when things get tight we can rely on him."
Foden matches Messi and Haaland feat with 50th league goal under Guardiola
Phil Foden equalled the feats of Lionel Messi and Erling Haaland when he scored his 50th league goal as Manchester City stormed into a 3-0 lead against Brighton.
Foden scored twice in the first half at the Amex Stadium on Thursday, setting Pep Guardiola's team on the way to a potentially pivotal win in the Premier League title race.
The England international's first, which came after Kevin De Bruyne's excellent diving header, came as his free-kick deflected in off the unfortunate Pascal Gross.
It was that goal that marked Foden's 50th in league football, with all of those coming under Guardiola.
That makes Foden just the third player to score 50 league goals under Guardiola while aged 23 or younger, after City team-mate Haaland and Barcelona great Messi.
Foden netted his 51st Premier League goal soon after, drilling in after City capitalised on some slack Brighton play.
Borussia Dortmund gearing up for crucial clashes against RB Leipzig and PSG
Borussia Dortmund are bracing for their two most important matches of the season.
Saturday's game at RB Leipzig in the Bundesliga is followed by a Champions League semi-final first leg at home to Paris-Saint Germain on May 1.
With the league title already wrapped up by runaway leaders Bayer Leverkusen, attention has shifted to the battle to qualify for the European competitions next season.
Dortmund's unexpected success in Europe has thrilled fans but the team's future in the continent's top club competition beyond this term could rest a lot on the result against Leipzig.
BVB are in fifth place on 57 points with Leipzig fourth on 59 and four games left in the campaign. The top four teams qualify for the Champions League group stage, although Germany is likely to earn a fifth spot as one of the top two in UEFA's coefficient table depending on the remaining results in European competition this season.
A Dortmund defeat against Leipzig would see them drift five points behind their rivals with three games remaining, so Edin Terzic's side are aiming to keep hot on their rivals' heels.
"It is a very important, decisive game against Leipzig," said Dortmund defender Nico Schlotterbeck.
"They are our direct rivals and it is a big difference for us finishing fourth or fifth.
"We lost against them earlier in the season and now we want to win this. It is the fight for fourth place."
Dortmund conceded a last-gasp equaliser in last week's 1-1 draw against Leverkusen but have won five of their last seven league games, including a 2-0 victory over Bayern Munich.
"It is extremely important for us to keep trying with 100 per cent to get that fourth place," said goalkeeper Gregor Kobel.
"We cannot sit back and relax until we have achieved that. We must maintain focus and step on the gas."
RB Leipzig chief determined to seal top-four Bundesliga finish
RB Leipzig are determined to wrap up a top-four Bundesliga finish, despite fifth spot possibly earning a place in next season's Champions League, the club's chief business officer said on Thursday.
Leipzig, who host Borussia Dortmund on Saturday, are fourth on 59 points, two ahead of Dortmund with four games left in the season. A win would put the Saxony club firmly in the driving seat for a top-four finish.
The top four qualify automatically for the Champions League group stage, although Germany is likely to earn a fifth spot as one of the top two in UEFA's coefficient table depending on the remaining results in European competition this season.
"That (potential fifth spot) involves a lot of data and statistics," said Leipzig CBO Johann Plenge in a media call. "We are not spending too much time on this discussion."
"This is not something we take too much into consideration. We have the ambition to be a top-four club and to be that you have to finish in at least fourth place," he said.
Leipzig, who will go on a U.S. tour from July 28-Aug. 4 and will play Aston Villa in New Jersey, also competed in the Champions League this season, losing to Real Madrid 2-1 on aggregate in the round of 16.
"The match (against Dortmund) is extremely important. We are very focused and 100% confident we will give everything on the pitch," Plenge said.
"I think we have a very good situation to finish the season as a top-four club."
Plenge said for the new season the club planned to hold on to their top performers, unlike last year when several key players, including Josko Gvardiol, Dominik Szoboszlai, Christopher Nkunku and Konrad Laimer, left, forcing a big overhaul.
"We had a very intense transfer period last summer. We developed some great players [for] the Premier League. We want a less intense transfer period and to keep the players together," Plenge said.
"Having them in our team next season is what we will do in the summer."
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