Chelsea vs Barcelona Match Preview
CHELSEA (Odds: 10/1) Amid a shambolic Premier League campaign, Chelsea have squirmed into the last four without ever truly convincing. Since taking over as interim manager, Roberto Di Matteo has taken the only realistic option available, restoring the senior players whose conflict with Andre Villas-Boas spelt the end of the Portuguese. [caption id="attachment_684" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Chelsea"]
[/caption] If that means suffering the indignity of John Terry bellowing instructions from the bench and offering condescending messages of support, so be it. After a fine 1-0 win in Lisbon, they were made very uncomfortable by Benfica at Stamford Bridge before the dismissal of Maxi Pereira by card-happy Damir Skomina eased their passage. Di Matteo will look to his veterans to exact revenge against a Barcelona side whose controversial semi-final win in 2009 still rankles - expect to see roughly 50,000 replays of Didier Drogba bellowing expletives into a TV camera between now and the first leg. Whether the likes of Drogba and Frank Lampard can continue to produce stirring performances in defiance of their ageing limbs remains to be seen, but Barcelona will certainly not relish a physical and emotionally-charged semi-final. In a word: Defiant In another word: Creaking Watch Chelsea vs Barcelona Live Streaming
BARCELONA (Odds: 10/11) We know all about Barcelona's good points, their world-class players and their impeccable recent record in the Champions League. They are strong favourites for a good reason. But unbeatable? Certainly not. Let's not forget they are six points adrift in the Spanish title race thanks to iffy away form (only eight wins and 26 goals in 15 games compared with Real's 12 wins and 40 goals). And keep in mind that after 130 minutes of their tie against Milan they were behind on away goals. Yes, they outplayed Milan, but they needed some assistance for all three goals. 1-A horrible Mexes blunder and Antonini lunge; 2-A penalty decision for a foul many refs would have ignored; 3-A kind ricochet to Andres Iniesta. On Wednesday morning Early Doors compared Barcelona to Roger Federer, and occasionally they, like Federer, become so absorbed in the beauty of their own game they sometimes lose sight of why they are playing - namely, to win. Should Barca take care of business against Chelsea, they might just be rooting for their arch-rivals Real Madrid to win the other semi-final - they have lost to Real only once in 14 games. Bayern Munich, with their devastating counter-attacks and stellar wingers who might actually force Barca's full-backs to do some defending, are a nightmare match-up for Pep Guardiola's side, plus they would have home advantage. In a word: Majestic In another word: Narcissistic Yahoo Sports
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