Chelsea rallies to seize Europa final spot
Source: Agencies |
May 4, 2013, Saturday
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Print Edition
Print Edition
CHELSEA has a chance to finish the season with another European trophy.
The English side reached its first Europa League final on Thursday after finishing off Basel with a comeback 3-1 win at Stamford Bridge, giving the team a chance to salvage some pride after becoming the first reigning Champions League holder to get knocked out in the group stage.
"Really pleased to be there," interim Chelsea manager Rafa Benitez said. "We've been working so hard through the year to be in a semifinal, final. And now we're in the final. The players really deserve to be there."
Fernando Torres scored one goal and set up another, while David Luiz added a curling strike to cap the victory.
Chelsea held a 2-1 lead from the first leg but Basel threatened a comeback when Mohamed Salah put the Swiss side ahead in first-half injury time.
But Torres engineered the comeback after the break, equalizing in the 50th and helping create the second for Victor Moses just two minutes later.
David Luiz finished off the victory in style, curling in an unstoppable strike from outside the area in the 59th as Chelsea advanced 5-2 on aggregate.
Chelsea will play Benfica in the final in Amsterdam on May 15 in what will be Benitez's only chance to finish his tenure with a trophy. Benfica beat Turkish club Fenerbahce 3-1 at home to turn around a 0-1 deficit from the first leg and advance.
Chelsea lost the final in the Club World Cup this season along with defeats in the European Super Cup and England's Community Shield. "We have one more opportunity to win a big title," Luiz said. "We have lost three finals this season."
Benitez is expected to leave in the offseason and the crowd made it clear they won't miss him, with chants of "Jose Mourinho" ringing out regularly around Stamford Bridge. Mourinho hinted strongly at a return to the London club on Wednesday after Real Madrid was eliminated in the Champions League semifinals. But Benitez once again found a way to turn a game around in the second half, after Basel had taken advantage of poor defending to go ahead just before the break.
"It was just things we weren't doing well, things we could improve," Benitez said. "And the reaction was really good."
Frank Lampard's low shot from outside the area was saved by Yann Sommer, and Torres slid in to fire the rebound into the roof of the net for the equalizer.
The second came almost immediately and in similar fashion. This time it was Torres who fired a shot from outside the area that was deflected into the path of Moses, who slotted in from nearly the same spot.
If those goals were more gritty than pretty, David Luiz added a bit of flair seven minutes later.
Lampard collected a cross outside the area and thought about shooting before laying the ball off to the Brazilian defender, whose left-footed shot curled perfectly into the far corner past a helpless Sommer.
"In the first half we played very good and I think we caused Chelsea some problems," Basel coach Murat Yakin said. "In the second half, it just went too fast. We made a few mistakes and we were caught out cold."
The English side reached its first Europa League final on Thursday after finishing off Basel with a comeback 3-1 win at Stamford Bridge, giving the team a chance to salvage some pride after becoming the first reigning Champions League holder to get knocked out in the group stage.
"Really pleased to be there," interim Chelsea manager Rafa Benitez said. "We've been working so hard through the year to be in a semifinal, final. And now we're in the final. The players really deserve to be there."
Fernando Torres scored one goal and set up another, while David Luiz added a curling strike to cap the victory.
Chelsea held a 2-1 lead from the first leg but Basel threatened a comeback when Mohamed Salah put the Swiss side ahead in first-half injury time.
But Torres engineered the comeback after the break, equalizing in the 50th and helping create the second for Victor Moses just two minutes later.
David Luiz finished off the victory in style, curling in an unstoppable strike from outside the area in the 59th as Chelsea advanced 5-2 on aggregate.
Chelsea will play Benfica in the final in Amsterdam on May 15 in what will be Benitez's only chance to finish his tenure with a trophy. Benfica beat Turkish club Fenerbahce 3-1 at home to turn around a 0-1 deficit from the first leg and advance.
Chelsea lost the final in the Club World Cup this season along with defeats in the European Super Cup and England's Community Shield. "We have one more opportunity to win a big title," Luiz said. "We have lost three finals this season."
Benitez is expected to leave in the offseason and the crowd made it clear they won't miss him, with chants of "Jose Mourinho" ringing out regularly around Stamford Bridge. Mourinho hinted strongly at a return to the London club on Wednesday after Real Madrid was eliminated in the Champions League semifinals. But Benitez once again found a way to turn a game around in the second half, after Basel had taken advantage of poor defending to go ahead just before the break.
"It was just things we weren't doing well, things we could improve," Benitez said. "And the reaction was really good."
Frank Lampard's low shot from outside the area was saved by Yann Sommer, and Torres slid in to fire the rebound into the roof of the net for the equalizer.
The second came almost immediately and in similar fashion. This time it was Torres who fired a shot from outside the area that was deflected into the path of Moses, who slotted in from nearly the same spot.
If those goals were more gritty than pretty, David Luiz added a bit of flair seven minutes later.
Lampard collected a cross outside the area and thought about shooting before laying the ball off to the Brazilian defender, whose left-footed shot curled perfectly into the far corner past a helpless Sommer.
"In the first half we played very good and I think we caused Chelsea some problems," Basel coach Murat Yakin said. "In the second half, it just went too fast. We made a few mistakes and we were caught out cold."
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