Match Report: Chelsea 0 - 1 Inter Milan

Jose Mourinho returned to Stamford Bridge in triumph as Inter Milan sent Chelsea crashing out of the Champions League.

Samuel Eto's clinical strike 11 minutes from time settled a scrappy encounter and sealed a place in the quarter-finals for Mourinho at the expense of the club he left in 2007 after a hugely successful three-and-a-half years.

And the misery for Chelsea and coach Carlo Ancelotti was complete when Didier Drogba was sent off in the closing minutes after a penalty area clash with Thiago Motta.

Mourinho's Inter were able to keep a subdued Chelsea at arm's length for the majority of a tense evening littered with fouls and spells of ill-feeling, with even the self-appointed "Special One" being targeted for abuse by the supporters who once idolised him as frustration spread around Stamford Bridge in the closing moments.

He celebrated in relatively muted fashion when Eto'o capped a spell of Inter pressure with the crucial goal, after Diego Milito had missed the chance to seal Chelsea's fate even earlier.

Chelsea had their moments in a frantic first half, with Michael Ballack shooting just wide and Nicolas Anelka seeing a close-range effort cleared off the line by Motta, while keeper Julio Cesar saved well from Florent Malouda after the break.

And Chelsea were also left claiming they were victims of a clear injustice in the first half when Drogba was dragged to the ground by Walter Samuel as they wrestled to reach a corner.

This apart, Inter were able to restrict Chelsea, who failed to show the wit and guile required to break them down, demonstrating the defensive discipline and resilience that is the trademark of any Mourinho team.

He did not milk Inter's win at the final whistle, but Mourinho may just appreciate the irony of the fact that he has ended Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich's dream of bringing the Champions League to Stamford Bridge.

For Ancelotti and Chelsea, the task is now to regroup and refocus their sights on the Premier League and the FA Cup.

Mourinho stated his attacking intent with the presence of Goran Pandev, Milito and Eto'o, but after a positive start the game soon descended into a predictable war of attrition.

Chelsea's Ballack posted the first moment of danger, but he dragged his shot low and wide past Cesar's upright from the edge of the area. Drogba was also denied by a defiant block from Maicon as he closed in on goal.

Inter knew that vital away goal would leave Chelsea with a huge task, and Eto'o wasted a wonderful opportunity to provide it for them after 33 minutes.

Maicon's cross deceived John Terry, but Eto'o appeared surprised at getting the chance and directed a poor header down and well over the bar.

In a frantic finale to the first 45 minutes, Walter Samuel threw himself in front of Malouda as he drove into the box, while Motta rescued Inter with a goalline clearance as Anelka forced a shot beyond Cesar.

The tension was robbing the game of any real quality and also resulted in plenty of short tempers. And Chelsea were particularly infuriated when referee Wolfgang Stark ignored penalty appeals as Drogba was clearly dragged to the ground by Samuel as the grappled to reach a corner.

Both teams left the pitch to a frustrated chorus of jeering at the interval, with Chelsea coach Ray Wilkins clearly angry at the events of the first half.

Mourinho's gestures from the sidelines made it clear he wanted Inter to exploit the areas around Chelsea left-back Yuri Zhirkov, but the Russian full-back twice rescued his side with perfect challenges on Eto'o and Pandev as they closed in on keeper Ross Turnbull.

Malouda brought a fine save from Julio Cesar at his near post, but once again Chelsea were having trouble producing the invention needed to break the deadlock.

Ancelotti responded by sending on Joe Cole just after the hour, but this was only the signal for Inter to create, and waste, their best chance as Milito snatched at his effort with only Turnbull to beat, much to Stamford Bridge's relief.

Inter had been the more dangerous team after the break, and the killer away goal they had been threatening duly came with 11 minutes left. Wesley Sneijder's pass cut Chelsea apart and Eto's showed great expertise to guide his finish around Turnbull.

Mourinho indulged in some fairly low-key fist-pumping, but the rest of Inter's backroom staff and players celebrated wildly as Chelsea's players were forced to accept their Champions League hopes were over for another year.

As time ran out and emotions ran high, Drogba appeared to stand on Motta's foot and saw red. It was a moment that summed up Chelsea's miserable night.

I Should Still Be The Manager At Chelsea, Says José Mourinho

José Mourinho breezed back into Stamford Bridge last night to declare he was "home" and should still be Chelsea's manager. The Internazionale coach pointed out that while he has continued to accumulate silverware in Italy his former club has one FA Cup to show for the three years since his departure.

The Portuguese veered from an initially diplomatic script, marked by an admission that he would tone down his celebrations should the Italian champions eliminate their hosts from the Champions League this evening, to suggest some level of regret at the fracture of his relationship with Roman Abramovich after his glittering three-year spell in charge at the London club.

"I feel sorry but I look forward," said Mourinho. "I feel sorry because when I look at the big four teams from when I was in England, the managers are all still there: Sir Alex [Ferguson] is there. [Arsène] Wenger is there. [Rafael] Benítez is there. I did more than enough to be here. But the decision was made. Chelsea looked forward. I look forward. They move on. I move on. I keep winning important things. They keep winning ... something. They won an FA Cup.

"I have nothing to prove to Chelsea: to Chelsea's players, to Chelsea's fans, to Chelsea's board. The relations are great. When it's possible, happiness for me and happiness for them is the perfect situation. I don't believe I will be booed. I believe I will be clapped. But, for me, this game is just about getting to the quarter-finals. It doesn't mean anything else to me at all."

His only regret concerned the timing of his eventual departure, with Mourinho conceding he should have left Stamford Bridge on his own terms immediately after claiming the FA Cup in 2007. By then his relationship with Abramovich had fractured beyond repair, though the Portuguese was persuaded to remain at the club, only to be forced out in September of that year after a sluggish start to the following season.

Asked if there was one thing he could change from his time at Chelsea, he said: "I would have left the day after the FA Cup final at the end of that third season. The timing was wrong [when I eventually did leave]. I waited until September and I didn't enjoy my time after I left until I went to Inter. Being away from football was too painful. If I'd left in May I would have started the next season at a new club."

Inter – with whom he claimed the domestic title last season – may top Serie A again, albeit by a solitary point, but the 47-year-old is enduring a relatively torrid time in Italy at present. Defeat at lowly Catania last Friday has allowed Milan to gain ground in the championship race, while Mourinho and his Italian striker Mario Balotelli were reportedly embroiled in a spat at training in Milan today which has resulted in the forward being omitted from the squad for disciplinary reasons. Carlo Ancelotti has since suggested he might seek to work with Balotelli at Chelsea.

In the circumstances, and with his relations with the Italian press clearly strained, Mourinho appeared to relish a return to London and familiar haunts. "I feel at home," he said.

"I opened the door, went up to the second floor where there are people I know; to the third floor where there are people I know. The players didn't come to see me but they are working, or at the team hotel. Before the game I know everybody and I love them, and after the game the same, but, for 90 minutes on Tuesday night, I'll know nobody.

"I'll be restrained if we win, yes. Because it's Chelsea. Because it's the team where I worked for three and a half years, the same players, the same supporters who made me feel incredible every time we played in this stadium. But don't confuse this emotional control with a lack of professionalism or of me not having a desire to win. I watched the first leg seven times on DVD, stopping and going back over and over again. Chelsea is different and I have to be different but I gave everything to prepare for this game. So don't confuse my feelings for my ex-players and my ex-club with any lack of desire or motivation to win this game."

The Inter manager was confident enough to name seven of his starting line-up for this evening's collision with Ancelotti – with whom he endured a troubled relationship last season when they were on opposite sides of Milan – and said that his former club was in safe hands under their current manager. Mourinho said: "They have a good chef, yes, a chef with experience and with knowledge of the ingredients that football needs. They are in good hands."

Yet Mourinho still has designs to return to the Premier League in the future. "I have three things still to do in my career," the Portuguese said. "One thing is to come back to English football. Another is to win the Spanish championship, because no one has won Italian, English and Spanish titles.

"And another, when I'm old, is to coach my national team. But, for now, I would like to keep winning with Inter.

"I will still be the Special One whatever happens. How old is Giovanni Trapattoni? Seventy? I want to coach as long as him but, even at that age, I will still have things to prove. That's my motivation. So, after this game, I will still be the Special One. Win or lose."

Real Madrid Eyeing Chelsea's Ashley Cole

Chelsea left-back Ashley Cole is Real Madrid's top prospect in their plans to reinforce the left side of defence next season, reports Marca today.

The club hierarchy has reportedly developed a list of their transfer targets for the position and along with Cole, who heads the list, Los Blancos are also keeping tabs on Manchester United's Patrice Evra, Lazio's Aleksandar Kolarov, Arsenal's Gael Clichy, Fenerbache's Andre Santos, Deportivo La Coruna's Filipe Luis and Benfica's David Luiz.

Cole has reportedly been in contact with Chelsea, having expressed his desire to leave the club for a variety of personal reasons.

While right-sided player Alvaro Arbeloa has filled in nicely at left-back this season, covering for the less defensive minded Marcelo, Madrid are in need of a proficient left-back that can slot into the Blancos' attack-minded style of play.

Chelsea Are Not The Side Jose Mourinho Left But They Are Still Good Enough

Internazionale need José Mourinho's sulky charisma even more than his tactical acumen. His personality can distract opponents from the fact that his side, judged by the high standards of the Champions League elite, is unremarkable. If Chelsea keeps a clear head, they ought to overturn the 2-1 deficit from a gripping first leg. Should anyone in Carlo Ancelotti's squad need reassurance, they could get a chuckle out of reading Internazionale's recent record in the tournament.

The most they have achieved in the previous half dozen campaigns is a couple of appearances in the quarter-finals. Mourinho continued the mundane form in his first season with Inter, unable to make much of a fuss as Manchester United eased them aside. Chelsea's disappointments have been far more histrionic.

After the Portuguese had parted company with the club in the autumn of 2007, Avram Grant took them to a shootout loss against United in the final. A year later the side, under the caretaker leadership of Guus Hiddink, were beaten in the semi‑final by the referee Tom Henning Ovrebo's rejection of penalty appeals as well as Andrés Iniesta's goal for Barcelona in the third minute of stoppage time. No one can call such experiences enviable but they confirm Chelsea as a team who customarily play for high stakes.

It would be trite to believe that Mourinho can cure Inter with an injection of his personality. The limitations of even his managerial skills were set out in the comedy of Inter's loss at Catania last Friday. The introduction of Sulley Muntari, with the score at 1‑1, may have been one of the most hilariously disastrous decisions in the history of the game. It would, in all justice, be absurd to suppose that even the far-sighted Mourinho could have envisaged the consequences.

Muntari was immediately booked for a foul and then, while inside the area, lifted his arm to block the resultant free‑kick. The Ghanaian was shown a second yellow card and Catania scored from the penalty before claiming a third goal towards the end.

Inter, with a one-point lead over Milan, are still on course for a fifth consecutive title and it is scarcely their fault that the Calciopoli scandal caused such helpful havoc with Juventus, for instance, demoted to Serie B in 2006. Nonetheless, Mourinho has benefited from entering the Italian game at time of disruption, when the means and relative stability at Inter have been great assets.

For a man with such a reputation as a pragmatist, he takes part of the credit for a first-leg encounter with Chelsea that was full of entertainment and admirable technique. It will be to the benefit of European football as a whole if Mourinho can inspire a revival by the renowned Serie A clubs.

Progress, all the same, ought not to be made on that front tonight. If there is disquiet about Chelsea it reflects their own flaws more than the prowess of Inter. The Premier League table lays bare a vulnerability seldom associated with them. There are seven other clubs whose defensive record at home is superior to Chelsea's. It is not difficult to track the sources of deterioration in the post‑Mourinho period.

Ricardo Carvalho is no longer the smooth yet powerful centre-back he once was and it is open to debate whether the Portuguese or Alex ought to be paired with John Terry. The club captain has himself been affected by having the England captaincy taken from him. Petr Cech's calf muscle problem has been unsettling, too, with neither Hilario nor Ross Turnbull convincing as deputies between the posts.

Resilience has been further undermined by the loss to injury of the left-back Ashley Cole and the powerful Michael Essien. It is as if the fates have introduced a handicap system to ensure that Inter stay in contention. Chelsea should keep self pity at bay by remembering how today's visitors toiled in their group. Barcelona, naturally, won it, but it was still mediocre of Inter to register a mere pair of victories, over Rubin Kazan and Dynamo Kyiv. Mourinho's side, with three draws in that phase, seemed to depend on being difficult to beat.

There was stylishness from Inter and, particularly, from Wesley Sneijder in the first leg with Chelsea. If Ancelotti's team is not presently equipped for flawless work in defence, they will have to impose themselves in attack. It would be of benefit if Nicolas Anelka, subdued since Didier Drogba's return from the Africa Cup of Nations, rediscovered his form. Chelsea have their worries, but they also possess the means to ease them.

Chelsea Get It All Wrong With Battle Cry To Fans As They Ask Home Crowd To 'Raise The Temperature' For Crunch Clash With Inter Milan

Liverpool supporters taunt their Chelsea counterparts with the chant 'You ain't got history' while some question how many supporters have joined the bandwagon since Roman Abramovich rode into town with all those rubles.

Fans of the London club naturally bristle with indignation at the jibes - but honestly, the club doesn't always help their cause.

Have a look at this edict from the official website as Stamford Bridge gets ready to welcome the aristocrats from Inter Milan.

'Flags or scarves will be laid out at seats around the stadium for tonight's game but please bring your own colour and singing voices, and please arrive early to raise the temperature ahead of kick-off'

Yes, you read it right folks - it really does say 'raise the temperature'.

Can you honestly imagine Manchester United fans needing such instruction before one of those famous European nights at Old Trafford?

I doubt very much the Anfield crowd will ever need to be whipped up into any manufactured frenzy for the big occasions - indeed Chelsea know to their cost how loud that ground can be after that 2005 European Cup semi-final.

I don't even think London's 'lesser lights' would need such encouragement. Certainly not West Ham. Probably not Fulham either.

So as you settle down to watch live coverage of the big Champions League match, or listen in your transistor sets, try and gauge the temperature for yourself.

Ancelotti: Roman Likes Blues' Style

Chelsea manager Carlo Ancelotti claims he has finally given owner Roman Abramovich a team that plays with the style and flair he craves.

The Russian owner has long been known to desire an attacking style of play at Stamford Bridge, and Ancelotti believes his team has delivered that this season.

With Jose Mourinho returning to West London for a Champions League showdown with Chelsea on Tuesday night, the timing of Ancelotti's comments suggests he is aiming a sly dig at his Portuguese opposite number.

The 'Special One' had an extremely successful three-year spell with Chelsea between 2004 and 2007, winning two Premier League titles, two League Cup trophies and one FA Cup.

But criticism was often rounded on Mourinho that his style of play did not match the ambitions of Abramovich, and the former Porto boss left after reported disagreements with the billionaire owner.

Ancelotti, however, claims he shares the same attacking ethos as Chelsea's wealthy chief and says he has changed things since his arrival.

He said in The Sun: "Some things we have changed. The system of play is a little bit different. We play attacking football.

"Roman wants to see the team in his identity. I think the team now is playing with his identity. We want to improve this but this is a good way to play."

Simon Kjaer Tells Liverpool, Manchester United & Chelsea: I Will Only Leave Palermo For Irresistible Offer

Simon Kjaer has said only a substantial offer will see him swap Palermo for Premier League football.

Kjaer, who turns 21 next week, is reportedly being followed by Liverpool, Manchester United and Chelsea.

But his signature will not come cheap as he lays out the terms and conditions.

"I have three years left with Palermo. To leave here, one of those offers that you cannot say no to will have to arrive," he told the club's official website.

Add to that a guarantee of playing first team football, and negotiations become easier.

"I am a first choice at this club, and I have the chance to play in prestigious competitions wearing the Rosanero jersey," he concluded.

Palermo currently occupies the Champions League qualification position in Serie A and welcome Inter to La Favorita on Saturday night.

Capello Not Giving Up On Bridge And Cole

Fabio Capello is playing a patient, waiting game, but is still convinced he will have both his first choice left-backs, Ashley Cole and Wayne Bridge, in his 23-man World Cup squad.

After losing David Beckham through injury this weekend, the England boss is concentrating on formulating his strongest possible squad for South Africa - and that still includes Cole and Bridge.

Cole is facing a race against time to be fit following a foot injury, while Bridge has taken the decision to make himself unavailable in light of the allegations that concerned John Terry and his former girlfriend.

An FA insider told Soccernet: "We believe that Ashley Cole will be back playing in time for the World Cup, and this is good news.

"There is still plenty of time for Wayne Bridge to think again about his decision not to want to play for England again. There is enough time for him to think about it.

"There is no rush, we are not rushing him, and I am sure Fabio will want to talk to him personally, in the hope that he will change his mind."

Capello has also invited Beckham to play again for England in the European Championship qualifiers in the autumn, which is the earliest point at which the then 35-year-old midfielder could be expected to play again.

"We hope he will be fit for next year," the England manager told Sky Sports News. "I hope he will be fit for the Euros because he is one of the best players in England."