Blues progress after draw
11 Dec 2007 - 22:01:00
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- Blues progress after draw
Chelsea ended their Champions League group campaign unbeaten after a goalless draw with a poor Valencia side at Stamford Bridge.
Avram Grant's side had already qualified for the knockout stages as Group B winners, but were dominant in a match against opponents clearly suffering a crisis of confidence after a poor start to their domestic season.
Indeed the Blues should have been home and dry long before Salomon Kalou and Joe Cole both clattered the woodwork in the second half.
However, they found veteran Spain international goalkeeper Santiago Canizares in inspired form, as he pulled off a string of saves to keep his side in the game.
The result ensured Valencia also failed to qualify for the UEFA Cup and, on the evidence of this performance, it is easy to see why they will play no part in European competition in the New Year.
The home side were totally dominant even without injured striker Didier Drogba, who is out for three weeks after undergoing knee surgery at the weekend.
Canizares did well to tip Andriy Shevchenko's first-time effort from Frank Lampard's superb cut back around his post with the Ukraine striker at full-stretch in the fifth minute.
The 37-year-old then palmed away a thunderbolt of a shot from just inside the area from Lampard after Kalou teed him up on the half-hour mark.
Canizares also planted his body behind a low drive from Claudio Pizarro just before the interval and Ivan Helguera scrambled the ball away from the danger zone.
Grant shuffled his pack at half-time by bringing on Claude Makelele for the disappointing Shevchenko.
However, it was the 62nd minute arrival of Cole off the bench which pepped up Chelsea and prompted their best moves of the match.
Pizarro had already wasted a clear-cut chance when he side-footed a 16-yard shot straight at Canizares, before Kalou spurned the best opportunity of the night in the 74th minute.
The Ivorian could only divert a volleyed chance from four yards against the bar after Pizarro had taken Canizares out of the equation by heading Cole's deep free-kick back across the face of goal.
Canizares turned a neat effort from Pizarro around his near post three minutes later as Chelsea piled on the pressure in the closing stages.
But luck wasn't on their side as Cole's surging run and shot in the 85th minute was pushed onto the inside of the post by a rather fortunate Canizares.
Valencia defender Stephen Sunday inexplicably nudged his clearance back towards goal, but Canizares was not to be beaten as he headed the ball off his goal-line, before berating his defence for a rather timid performance from which they were lucky to take a point.