Man Utd v AC Milan and Chelsea v Liverpool are live on RTÉ Two and RTÉ.ie ((RoI only; 450k) on 24/25 April.
The name of Chelsea Football Club may just be on the back of the Champions League trophy already after their astonishing victory in Valencia on Tuesday. Now, I know Manchester United and Liverpool fans will be reading this in absolute horror but if you were at the match at the Mestalla, you would know exactly what I am talking about.
Something very strange and very special is happening to Chelsea at the moment and winning this trophy for the first time could just be the start of it. The debate about 'buying the title' and all the millions they have is for another day and another time.
I have never been a great believer in the 'name on the trophy' thing but Manchester United fans believe they were destined to win in 1999 as did Liverpool supporters in 2005. One thing is for absolute certain; it is going to take an exceptional team to beat Chelsea in this competition and the late winner from Michael Essien makes me think they could just go all the way.
I have to point out that I thought Chelsea would go out of the competition to Valencia on Tuesday. The Spanish side had the advantage of the away goal and have real quality in their team. Ayala is one of the best defenders on the planet, while Silva and Villa are great attackers but they need the ball in the right areas. Fernando Morientes was also coming back into the team after injury, although he was lacking match fitness. They played some lovely football in the first leg and the crowd at the Mestalla can often be their 12th man.
Valencia are quite comfortable to give their opponents more of the ball and to try and hit them on the break even when at home – and that is exactly what they did. Chelsea had 65% of possession in the first half but Valencia had the lead thanks to Morientes. That forced Chelsea to really come out and play after the break. It has happened so many times during this season but Chelsea were a team transformed after the interval. Just as they had done in London, they got the early second half goal but the difference this week was that they did push on to win the match.
Jose Mourinho thinks of most things in football, but does he ask his team to be ordinary in the first half and try to tire out the opponents and then get them to come out and play the other side off the park after the break? It may not be a tactic he has openly discussed with his players but it has certainly worked for Chelsea in the last few weeks.
The spirit of his team can not be called into question either. That work-rate was there over the last two seasons when they won the Premiership but it went missing for a part of this term. You think back to the defeat at Liverpool at the end of January when they fell apart but it has come back now. It kept them going all the way to the 94th minute against Watford and it kept them going until the 91st minute against Valencia. I am not comparing Watford and Valencia, but I am comparing the fact that Chelsea kept going right until the very last whistle in both matches and won them both.
Midfielder Essien was the hero against Valencia, whereas Salomon Kalou had popped up with the late winner at Vicarage Road a couple of weeks ago.
I was hugely impressed by the total dominance of the match by Chelsea in the second half. Valencia had not been beaten at home this season in the Champions League but they were overrun in midfield and were played off the park for the second 45. I can only recall one effort at the Chelsea goal by the home side in the second half, which tells you much about the trend of the match.
Morientes made another telling Champions League contribution with a beautifully taken first half goal just two minutes after he had hit the post. He had been out for a while after dislocating his shoulder but he gave his team an hour of total effort and they were not the same when he went off. Canizares, the veteran Valencia 'keeper, has always had problems under crosses but he remains one of the best shot-stoppers in the game. His save from Michael Ballack when the match was tied at 1-1 is something I will never forget. He was not only able to stop the ball from going into the net but was somehow able to push the ball up and over the bar. I mentioned something about Gordon Banks in the commentary on the night which was a bit over the top, but the save was one of the best you will see at any time.
The shame for Canizares and Valencia is that he could not save the winning goal from Essien. The ball seemed to bounce over his out-stretched left hand but he will never forgive himself for being beaten at his near-post. It was a shame for Valencia who I thought could win the Champions League outright had they been able to put Chelsea away. But as we are finding out, that is not an easy task. The match was heading towards extra-time on Tuesday evening but Chelsea have this remarkable knack of scoring late goals – that was their 25th in the last 10 minutes of matches this season.
They never know when they are beaten – they are like the 1999 Manchester United side in that regard. They won three trophies that season but we are all wondering will Chelsea win four in 2006/07. 'Name on the trophy' – who believes in that rubbish? I am starting to waiver but the next five weeks will sort me out!
