Tag Archives: chelsea

Last-gasp Barcelona edge through to final

A stunning last-gasp strike from Andres Iniesta put 10-man Barcelona in the Champions League final on the away goals rule, giving the Catalan giants a 1-1 draw at Chelsea on a night of high drama at Stamford Bridge. With the clock showing two minutes gone out of an extra four minutes at the end of the game, Spanish international Iniesta fired in a sublime shot from the edge of the area to break Chelsea’s hearts and take Pep Guardiola’s side through to a dream final against holders Manchester United in Rome on May 27. Following last week’s cagey goalless draw at the Nou Camp, all the talk before the match was whether Barca’s stunning attacking prowess could pierce Chelsea’s solid defense.

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Man United crush Arsenal to reach final

Holders Manchester United remain on course to become the first side to retain the Champions League, as two goals in the first 11 minutes saw them defeat Arsenal 3-1 for a 4-1 aggregate victory and a place in the final against either Chelsea or Barcelona in Rome. A carnival atmosphere at the Emirates Stadium saw the home fans optimistic that last week’s 1-0 defeat at Old Trafford could be overturned, but those hopes were cruelly dashed as two individual mistakes allowed United to take a foothold in the game — a position they never looked likely to relinquish. Arsenal went into the match unbeaten in their last 27 home matches in Europe, since Chelsea defeated them 2-1 at Highbury in 2004, and had yet to taste European defeat at the Emirates, but that proud record always looked in doubt from the moment United took an eighth-minute lead.

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Drogba puts Chelsea into FA Cup final

Didier Drogba muscled his way through for a late winner to put Chelsea into the FA Cup final with a 2-1 victory over Arsenal at Wembley on Saturday. The all-London clash rarely hit the heights on a difficult pitch, but Drogba’s 84th minute strike gave Guus Hiddink’s men a deserved victory and leaves them in contention for three trophies

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Chelsea fight back for crucial away victory

Chelsea have one foot in the Champions League semifinals after fighting back from going a goal down at Anfield to beat Premier League rivals Liverpool 3-1 in their quarterfinal first leg on Wednesday. The London side knocked Liverpool out of the competition at the last four stage last year and they look set to repeat that feat this season, despite going behind to an early goal from Fernando Torres

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Football First XI: Best former Eastern Bloc players

The Berlin Wall came down 20 years ago and in that time the world game has opened its arms to a tidal wave of talent from behind the former Iron Curtain. Here, Football Fanzone picks the 11 finest footballers to emerge from the old Eastern Bloc since 1989

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Shearer tastes defeat as Chelsea move up

Alan Shearer’s first game in charge of Newcastle ended with a 2-0 defeat to Chelsea to leave the north-east giants deep in relegation trouble in the Premier League. Second half goals from Frank Lampard and Florent Malouda earned title challengers Chelsea a valuable three points which lifted them to second place ahead of Liverpool’s match later on Saturday at Fullham.

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Anelka blow for French World Cup hopes

Chelsea striker Nicolas Anelka dealt French World Cup ambitions a blow on Monday when he withdrew from a critical qualifying double against Lithuania with a toe problem. France coach Raymond Domenech has now called up Paris St Germain marksman Guillaume Hoarau for Saturday’s Group Seven clash at Kaunas and the return in Paris on April 1. The French currently trail leaders Serbia and Lithuania by five points, but have a game in hand as they bid to qualify for next year’s finals in South Africa

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Man United avoid Chelsea in FA Cup semis

Quintuple-chasing Manchester United and big rivals Chelsea remain on course for an FA Cup final showdown after they were drawn apart in Sunday’s semifinal pairings. Everton will face United while Chelsea, who lost on penalties to Alex Ferguson’s side in the 2008 Champions League climax, await the winners of the delayed sixth round clash between Arsenal and Hull City.

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