Side Note: Just like to say I am now working at full capacity to try and get this blog up and running. I have not been able to post for a month or so because I have been revising non stop. Now that's almost sorted I will be able to post more.
We've Done It (Almost)
So we did what many people thought was impossible, we not only stopped Barcelona from scoring, but also managed to knick a goal of our own and win the game. We beat the almost self-proclaimed best team in the world. Yes, it wasn't pretty, but I would rather we win ugly than lose pretty. From the moment the first few thousand fans packed into the mighty Stamford Bridge to the moment the last few thousand left, every single fan had an air of hope, that feeling that we could just do this.
That great hope was almost wiped away after just 6 minutes. Iniesta chipped a defence splitting ball to Sanchez who chipped the ball over the on-coming Petr Cech, only to hit the crossbar and the ball to be cleared by John Terry. This was greeted by the home fans with loud cheers, more out of relief than confidence. Barcelona were happy to pass the ball around in midfield for the first 15 minutes, and likewise Chelsea were happy to defend in numbers. However on 16 minutes Barcelona finally let the ball slip and Chelsea tried to seize the chance to counter attack. The ball was played well from left to right before Ivanovic went on a run from right back, he got to the edge of the 18 yard box before he was tackled and the ball was put out for a throw-in. Chelsea knew this may be one of their only chances to use a good set piece into the Barcelona box, Ivanovic stepped up with a long throw which was flicked on by Drogba. The ball bounced in the box and landed next to John Terry who flicked it against Dani Alves' leg, the ball broke to Cahill but again Alves cleared it off of Cahill's leg and went out for a goal kick.
Barcelona then went straight up the other end of the field, Iniesta played a neat ball to Messi from the right hand side, Messi jinked through Ivanovic and Cahill and was looking ready to cross. He instead chose to back heel the ball to Iniesta who hit the ball with some venom from a tight angle. Cech made a good save, however he could only palm the ball out to Cesc Fabregas who somehow could not put the ball into the back of the net from 7 yards. He scuffed his shot wide and Sanchez could only stab the ball wide to Alves whose cross was too deep and went out of play. For the next 10 minutes Barcelona once again kept possession in-front of the Chelsea defence. Barcelona got another half chance, this time an unusual long ball forward was headed away by John Terry, only to fall to the feet of Sanchez on the right wing. He got a quick cross to the edge of the box where Messi met it with a firm header, however Cech got down low and caught the ball comfortably.
Now you guessed again, Barcelona kept possession well without really creating anything. However Chelsea gave the ball away cheaply (on the odd occasion they got more than 3 touches) in the 42nd minute, Messi picked up the ball and ran at the Chelsea centre backs. Fabregas made a good run between Ivanovic and Cahill, Messi made a superb pass to him and Fabregas went to try and lob it over Cech. He got it over Cech but the ball had little pace on it, this just gave enough time for Ashley Cole to get back and clear the ball off the line in a last ditch slide.
Just 4 minutes later came the game-changing moment. Lionel Messi dropped back to around the centre circle to pick up the ball, by the time he had turned he was faced by both Lampard and Mikel. Lampard cheaply dispossessed him and immediately Drogba made the diagonal run, dragging Puyol and Mascherano with him. This left a massive gap on the right side of the pitch, due to Alves being in Chelsea's half. Ramires immediately saw the space and did what he does best, ran. He made the run past Xavi and recieved a perfectly weighted pass from Lampard, he took it down on his chest and sprinted toward the Barcelona box. When the ball was first won Xavi had 4 yards on Ramires, but as Ramires entered the Barcleona box he had 6 yards on Xavi. Due to this gap Puyol and Mascherano felt they both (why just Puyol didn't go over is a mystery, this highlighted that Mascherano is definitely not a defender) needed to go over and stop him, big mistake. This left Drogba free at the far post, Ramires looked up and put in a perfect left-footed cross to the far post. Drogba hit it first time with his left foot, Valdes dived the right way but could only palm it into his own net. The Bridge went wild. Fans roared the name of Drogba, chanted "Chelsea, Chelsea, Chelsea" and jumped up and down like we had won the cup. However this was just a slender lead in the first leg of a Champions League semi-final, there was still 45 minutes and another game to go. But this didn't stop the fans and players alike thinking we could do it.
The second half really kicked into action on 50 minutes. Adriano picked up the ball on the half way line and ran at the Chelsea defence, he took a neat little touch past Lampard, who almost brought him down. This opened up some space for Adriano to hit the ball with his weaker right foot, his curling effort was palmed away by Petr Cech's strong right wrist out for a throw-in. Barcelona gave away the ball at the throw and Chelsea got some rare possession, they went up the other end of the pitch and won there first corner of the game on 52 minutes. Lampard whipped it in, Ivanovic got a flick-on, but Cahill couldn't pull off a superb attempt at a scissor kick at the back post. The third chance of a hectic five minutes came when Sanchez played a neat one-two with Fabregas, Fabrgas' return was a neat ball chipped over John Terry. Sanchez was bearing down on goal, he took a poor first touch which gave Ashley Cole time to come across and force him to rush his shot and balloon it wide. Looking back this was a very good chance and he probably should have done better with it.
After this little scare, Chelsea shored up the defence. Once again they allowed Barcelona to keep the ball and try to hit them on the break. They soaked up the pressure well and Barca were struggling to break them down. However on the 69th minute Mikel made a rash challenge, from the resulting free kick Xavi could only put the ball over the bar. After this it was the same story as the rest of the match. Up until the 84th minute. Chelsea had a rare attack, the ball bounced around before eventually the ball fell to substitute Kalou, however he could only lift the ball way over the bar from 14 yards. After that it seemed as though Barcelona realised they were 1-0 down with just 5 minutes to go. They won a free kick about 40 yards out, taken very cleverly by Messi, he fired it around the wall at a low level. Cech was preparing for the save, however Puyol ducked down low and got a slight flick on, Cech readjusted well to tip it around the post at full stretch.
In the 93rd minute, with Barcelona desperate to get something from the game. Messi played the ball in to Busquets on the edge of the box, Busquets played a neat back heel to Messi. Terry read it really well though and slid in, however his clearance went straight to Thiago, his curling shot rolled along the ground, past Cech, but hit the post. With Cech on the floor it looked as though it would be an easy finish for a Barcelona man, however Chelsea got a massive slice of luck, it fell to that man Busquets, who is possibly the worst finisher on the field. He ran on, got his foot right underneath the ball and skied it high and wide. From the resulting goalkick the referee blew the whistle. The game was over. Chelsea fans were jubilant, as were the players. No one could say that after that dogged performance that Chelsea didn't deserve it. The job is only half done with a second-leg at the Nou Camp still to play. However Chelsea are in form and looking to beat Arsenal tomorrow, if they win that then they will be on a massive high. With it now confirmed that Drogba has signed a 2 year contract with a Chinese club, winning the Champions League would be an amazing send off for the senior players. Lets just pray we can do it. In Di Matteo we trust.
KTBFFH
Calum Heseltine
