Chelsea‘s Champions League ‘obsession’ is over for another year after a 3-1 aggregate defeat against Manchester United.
Carlo Ancelotti’s side, trailing 1-0 from the first leg, started brightly at Old Trafford but fell behind to a Javier Hernandez strike just before the break.
Chelsea’s night took a turn for the worse when Ramires was dismissed for a second bookable offence on 70 minutes but Didier Drogba, on for Fernando Torres at half-time, gave the Blues hope with a 77th-minute strike.
United responded instantly, though, as Ji-Sung Park’s strike restored the hosts’ two-goal cushion and ensured a relaxed finish to the game.
United will now face either Schalke or Inter in the semi-finals, with the Bundesliga side firm favourites after last week’s 5-2 win at the San Siro.
Meanwhile, Barcelona added to their sizeable lead over Shakhtar Donetsk to record a 6-1 aggregate victory.
Leading 5-1 from last week’s quarter-final first leg at the Camp Nou, Barca weathered an early storm at the Donbass Arena before netting what would prove to be the only goal of the night through Lionel Messi just before half-time.
Barca are now set to face Real Madrid in the next round unless Tottenham can come back from their 4-0 defeat at the Bernabeu when the teams meet at White Hart Lane on Wednesday.
Credit: http://soccernet.espn.go.com
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