Chelsea smash Schalke 5-0 to reach last 16
27 Nov 2014 10:00 PM GMT
Jose Mourinho’s Chelsea marched into Champions League last 16 as Group G winners on Tuesday after their emphatic 5-0 win at Robert di Matteo’s Schalke 04. Mourinho’s Premier League leaders brushed Di Matteo’s ineffective Royal Blues aside in Gelsenkirchen as captain John Terry (in pic) put them ahead within just two minutes of the kick-off. Further first-half scores by Willian and an own goal from defender Jan Kirchhoff were followed by second-half strikes from Didier Drogba and Brazil midfielder Ramires.
‘I am very happy, it was a very impressive performance. We weren’t coming here to see if a point would be enough to put us through and we showed that from the first minute. It was 90 minutes of good football,’ beamed Mourinho. The result matched Schalke’s record European home defeat when they were hammered 6-1 by Real Madrid in last season’s round of 16, first leg, in February this year.
Chelsea remain unbeaten in all 19 matches this season and are now four points clear in the table ahead of their final match at home to second-placed Sporting Lisbon in a fortnight. Di Matteo’s unbeaten home record after four wins was ended by his former club in brutal fashion. Schalke drop to third, having been leap-frogged by Sporting, and now face Maribor away in Slovenia in their final game next month needing to win to stand any chance of making the knock-out stages. Mourinho, who won Champions League with Inter Milan in 2010 and Porto in 2004, is bidding to win the European crown at the fifth attempt with Chelsea.
‘I am very happy, it was a very impressive performance. We weren’t coming here to see if a point would be enough to put us through and we showed that from the first minute. It was 90 minutes of good football,’ beamed Mourinho. The result matched Schalke’s record European home defeat when they were hammered 6-1 by Real Madrid in last season’s round of 16, first leg, in February this year.
Chelsea remain unbeaten in all 19 matches this season and are now four points clear in the table ahead of their final match at home to second-placed Sporting Lisbon in a fortnight. Di Matteo’s unbeaten home record after four wins was ended by his former club in brutal fashion. Schalke drop to third, having been leap-frogged by Sporting, and now face Maribor away in Slovenia in their final game next month needing to win to stand any chance of making the knock-out stages. Mourinho, who won Champions League with Inter Milan in 2010 and Porto in 2004, is bidding to win the European crown at the fifth attempt with Chelsea.
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