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Match - Sat 19 May, 20:00, Allianz Arena
| Goals | Goals |
|---|---|
| 25. Thomas Muller (83’) | 11. Didier Drogba (88’) |
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Penalty Shoot Out
Drogba sends Chelsea to Blue heaven
Chelsea's Didier Drogba celebrates after scoring
The Ivorian, who was sent off in the 2008 final against Manchester United that the Blues lost on penalties, put those ghosts to rest by cancelling out Thomas Muller’s opening goal to send the game to extra time and then penalties at 1-1, before scoring the final spot kick to see the London side win 4-3 in the shootout.
It was cruel on Bayern, who dominated the game on their own home ground, but Chelsea somehow kept themselves in the fight and held their nerve in the shootout to secure their first ever European crown and secure a place in next season’s UEFA Champions League.
Bayern dominated the first half but were unable to take advantage of the goal scoring opportunities they created. The first and best clear chance went the way of former Chelsea player Arjen Robben in the 21st minute, but the Dutchman’s low shot was blocked by Petr Cech before looping up to hit the post.
Ten minutes before the break Thomas Muller should have put the Germans into the lead when he got onto the end of a great cross from left-back Diego Contento, but the young attacker put his volley wide of the target.
On 42 minutes the dangerous striker Mario Gomez opened up some shooting space in the Chelsea box with a clever turn, but he then lost his composure and fired a left-footed shot high over the crossbar.
The Blues rarely offered anything in attack, with their only notable effort coming after a sweeping counter attack in the 37th minute that ended with Bayern goalkeeper Manuel Neuer making a pretty comfortable save from Salomon Kalou’s shot.
The second half continued in much the same manner as the first, with the German side dominating the match but struggling to create clear chances from which to try and capitalise on their superiority.
Finally, on 83 minutes, Bayern broke the deadlock. Toni Kroos floated a teasing in-swinging cross from the left flank and Thomas Muller arrived late the far post to beat Cech with a header that bounced up off the turn and crept in just under the crossbar.
The game seemed lost for Chelsea, but in the spirit that brought them to the final in the first place, they dug deep and came up with an equaliser. Didier Drogba was inevitably the man to get to the crucial goal, powering home a superb header in the 88th minute from Juan Mata’s corner kick to send the game to extra time.
Drogba turned from hero to villain early in extra time when he gave away a penalty for a clumsy foul on Franck Ribery. However, Robben’s penalty was saved by Cech. That proved to be the best chance of the extra half hour before the match went to penalties.
Chelsea started off poorly as Juan Mata’s kick was saved by Manuel Neuer, but David Luiz, Frank Lampard and Ashley Cole all converted their kicks, while Ivica Olic and Bastian Schweinsteiger saw their shots saved by Cech.
Didier Drogba stepped up to take the final kick and, with what may be his final touch for the Blues, he coolly slotted the ball to the right of Neuer to make it 4-3 and secure a first Champions League title for Chelsea and the city of London.
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