Could Chelsea win the Champions League?

Chelsea last night claimed a vital 1-0 victory at Portuguese side Benfica in the first leg of their Champions League quarter-finals clash.

In many ways it was a perfect away display by the Blues. They didn’t concede and snatched a late goal through winger Salomon Kalou.

Advantage

The 1-0 victory gives Chelsea a tremendous advantage going into the second leg at Stamford Bridge next Wednesday.

Chelsea needed to score at the Stadium of Light, as the Portuguese side have already performed well on English soil, drawing at Manchester United and perhaps deserved more at Old Trafford.

The clean sheet also means that Chelsea have some breathing space. The Blues haven’t always been solid at the back this season but produced a disciplined display in Portugal. Chelsea were the first club in 22 games to stop the home side from scoring on their own patch.

Trophies

Despite supposedly having a poor season Chelsea are in the FA Cup semi-final and have also now got one foot into the Champions League semi-final.

I don’t think anybody at Stamford Bridge would be describing the season as a failure if the Blues brought home both trophies, especially the holy grail of the Champions League trophy. It would be hard for even owner Roman Abramovich to deny that Chelsea’s season had been a decent one.

The Blues aren’t completely out of the race for a place in the top four of the Premier League either. I don’t think the season has been the doom and gloom some people have made it out to be.

Tough

If Chelsea do win the tie against Benfica, a much harder task lies before them in the semi-finals. A clash with either Italian champions AC Milan or European champions Barcelona would be their next reward for beating the Portuguese side.

The form that Barcelona are currently displaying leads me to believe that the Blaugrana will be the side that the Blues would have to overcome in the semi-finals. Barcelona haven’t had their usual imperious season but have re-gained their best form in recent months.

Messi and co. have been superb in recent weeks and have even started to make up ground on Real Madrid in La Liga. Barca look unlikely to catch Real in La Liga but they look determined to win the Champions League.

Fortunate

If AC Milan somehow managed to beat Barca then they could also be tough opposition. They have already knocked Arsenal out of the competition. However the Italian champions could count themselves somewhat fortune in that tie.

The Rossoneri won the first leg 4-0 at the San Siro, only to lose 3-0 at the Emirates Stadium in the second leg. The Gunners missed some gilt edged chances in that second leg and could have quite easily knocked Milan out.

I’m sure Chelsea fans and players would fancy their chances against the Italians more than the Spanish giants right now though.

Manager

Chelsea’s mini revival under Roberto Di Matteo has really enhanced the Italians reputation. The former-West Brom boss was only considered a seat warmer until the next big lamb to the slaughter arrived at Stamford Bridge.

However his part in reviving Chelsea’s fortunes could be just enough to persuade owner Roman Abramovich that Di Matteo is the man to do the rebuilding job at Stamford Bridge. Di Matteo has a great rapport with the fans and seems to have the players on his side.

He is relatively inexperienced as a boss but he is gaining more experience by the game and has managed to guide Chelsea to some crucial victories already in his short spell.

He knows the club well from being a player and part of the back room staff. Di Matteo isn’t looking like a bad shout for the job on a permanent basis the way the season is ending.

Unlikely

Although Chelsea have came this far I believe its unrealistic to expect them to win the Champions League. They would have to overcome some major obstacles to win the trophy this season, the biggest probably being Barcelona.

And if they overcame Barcelona then they could have to face Spanish champions elect Real Madrid in the final. Stranger things have happened than Chelsea winning the Champions League, but I can’t think of any recently.

Can Chelsea win the Champions League this season?