"No disrespect" - Rio Ferdinand rates Chelsea's UEFA Champions League hopes after Dortmund win

Manchester United legend Rio Ferdinand believes Chelsea are still the underdogs in the UEFA Champions League this season despite their win over Borussia Dortmund.

The Blues beat Dortmund 2-0 at Stamford Bridge in the second leg of their Round of 16 clash on Tuesday, March 7, winning the tie 2-1 on aggregate. This certainly comes as a big boost for the west London side, who have had an underwhelming season so far.

Ferdinand later acknowledged that the win might be a big boost for Chelsea but claimed that they aren't favorites for the Champions League trophy. He told BT Sport:

“I wouldn’t put them anywhere near being favourites, no disrespect, just because of the form and where other teams are in comparison.

“The difference this result can make for confidence right now is great, but you have to take it game by game. You can’t look any further than this weekend.”

Chelsea won the game on Tuesday courtesy of goals from Raheem Sterling and Kai Havertz. Both sides created multiple chances, with each side having 13 shots on goal and four being on target.

Sterling opened the scoring for the hosts just before half-time before Havertz netted with a re-take from the penalty spot in the second half.

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Graham Potter on Raheem Sterling and Kai Havertz following Chelsea's win over Borussia Dortmund

Graham Potter was full of praise for Raheem Sterling after the game and said (via Chelseafc.com):

"I thought Raheem alongside Kai was excellent and I was really pleased for him too. He played a slightly different role, but I thought he was really effective, and he caused their backline a lot of problems."

He added:

"Raheem’s a goalscorer and has plenty of experience in this competition, so we just felt that if we could get him and Kai [Havertz] into those attacking areas then we could have some joy in front of goal and thankfully those two both scored.

"Overall, it was a great team performance, and we’re through to the quarter-finals which is the next step for us."

Speaking about Kai Havertz's ability from the penalty spot, Potter said:

"We were confident in Kai, he’s our penalty taker and he showed that he’s a player for the big moments by scoring in such a pressure situation."

Havertz hit the post with his initial penalty attempt, but the referee called for a re-take after an encroachment in the box. The German buried the second strike to put his team in the Champions League's last eight.

Chelsea will next take on Leicester City away in the Premier League on Saturday, March 11.