It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.
And then it was just the worst of times.
Such was Chelsea's astounding exit from the Champions League
Wednesday night at Stamford Bridge courtesy of Atletico Madrid. Though the
visitors threatened early, the nerves of Chelsea supporters must have been assuaged
when former Atleti striker Fernando Torres found the back of the net with the type
of finish that has been few and far between since the Spaniard made his £50
Million move from Liverpool three years ago. Torres celebrated with dignity,
which is to say he didn't celebrate at all against the club that launched his
career back in 2001. But it was a goal; it was a lead. And the blueprint for
victory etched by Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho was going according to plan.
But then something happened. Something that was so uniquely
un-Chelsea that will leave Blues fans scratching their heads even harder than
they were following the loss to Sunderland a near fortnight ago.
The defending Europa League and 2012 Champions League
winners (a handful of whom were on the pitch Wednesday night), backed by 6—yes,
SIX—world class defenders and one of the most iconic managers in history, simply
lost focus.
Just eight minutes after Torres' opening goal, it was the
opportunistic Adrian who swooped in and pounced on a series of defensive gaffes
from three of Chelsea's most reliable defenders in John Terry, Gary Cahill, and
Ashley Cole, and bounced the ball past Mark Schwarzer, the Aussie keeper as bewildered
at the elementary chance as anyone watching the match. Atletico had the
advantage.
They never looked back after that.
Substitute Samuel Eto'o's stomp on Diego Costa was as
untimely as the Cameroonian's arrival at Stamford Bridge. There will be few tears
shed by Chelsea supporters should Eto'o move on to pastures new this summer,
the forward's legacy on English soil solidified by a rather unimpressive hat-trick
against David Moyes' Manchester United, and the detrimental foul on Costa,
which made way for the coup de grâce when the Spanish International converted
from the spot.
Eto'o will always be revered for his European exploits. He
was the first player to ever win the treble in back-to-back years with two
different clubs (Barcelona and Inter) in 2010, and has scored in two separate
Champions League Finals, both of which he tallied for the winning team. In that
light, Chelsea must have felt that Eto'o was some kind of good luck charm. But
the only club for whom he proved to be such a talisman was the one that hails
from the city where he began his career in 1997.
Though Chelsea needed to score twice following Costa’s
penalty, there was still plenty of time left at the 60-minute mark. It soon became
obvious, however, after several unsuccessful forays into Atletico’s half of the
pitch that on this night there was no plan B. Managers can concoct a formula
for triumph and implement the tactics necessary to take and then preserve a
lead. Mourinho did as much, but his players let him down; he never could have believed
Chelsea would capitulate quite like this. The Special One has now lost two
consecutive games at Stamford Bridge for the first time ever, and will have to
wait yet another season to secure that elusive Champions League title with a
third different club—the same one that he still hasn't led to a Final
appearance.
The third and final goal in the 72nd minute by
Turkish sensation and fan favorite Arda Turan added insult to injury for the
Stamford Bridge faithful, and guaranteed an all-Madrid Final in Lisbon on May
24. The loss is sure to go down as one of the most embarrassing and unexpected
in recent memory for Chelsea, not to mention one of the club’s worst collapses
in Europe (there haven’t been many of those). Now out of Europe, every domestic
competition, and needing an unlikely slip-up from both Manchester City and Liverpool
to win the Premier League, it appears that for the first time since 2011
Chelsea will finish the season without silverware. It would be the first time
in Mourinho's managerial career that he hasn’t won the league at least once in
consecutive seasons. Wednesday’s loss also marked the fourth straight year a
Mourinho side has been eliminated at this stage of the tournament.
Though his players failed to protect a narrow lead, one
can't help but think that Mourinho was finally bitten by the unapologetic fangs
of karma. This was, after all, his team. The one that he wanted, and the one
that he put together. It was Mourinho who believed that the triumvirate of
Torres, Eto'o, and Demba Ba would excel far more at the position than a robust
19-year-old Belgian named Romelu Lukaku, so much so that he let the 6'3" behemoth
of a striker go on loan to Everton for the year.
It was also Mourinho who deemed Chelsea's two-time Player of
the Year surplus to requirements back in January, selling Juan Mata—the very
man who crossed to Didier Drogba at the death to tie the 2012 Champions League Final,
which Chelsea eventually won—to rivals Manchester United. Lukaku has nearly
outscored all three Chelsea forwards combined this season, and Oscar's inconsistency,
Hazard's proneness to injury, and Willian's often reckless attacking have
hardly been suitable replacements for Mata's ingenuity and cleverness.
It’s a stretch, but Thibaut Courtois, who was brilliant in
net for Atletico, would have been an enormous upgrade over Schwarzer had the
Belgian not stayed on loan in Madrid—that, too, was Mourinho's call.
But it was not Mourinho’s fault when his defenders failed to
clear the wayward ball that led to the first Atletico goal, or that his backline
breached thrice at home in a Champions League semifinal. Nor was it his fault
when PFA Young Player of the Year Hazard was a disappearing act in what was the
biggest match of the season, his sole contribution being the assist to Turan’s
late goal. Nor was it the manager’s fault that veteran stalwart Frank Lampard
acquired too many yellow cards to play on Wednesday night. The lack of
leadership in the midfield was especially noticeable against Atletico, as it
has been at times all season.
But when you hire Mourinho, you hand over your trust to him
as well. You put your faith and all personnel decisions in the man who needs no
introduction. His credentials speak for themselves—you have to be a true
ignoramus if you think Mou hasn't gotten a clue what he is doing.
If history is any indicator of what the future holds, then
Mourinho's 2014-15 squad might be the most impregnable Chelsea side yet (if not
it's most impervious). The Special One has shone especially bright in his
second seasons with his various clubs winning the Champions League in such circumstances
with Porto and Inter, and winning the league with Chelsea and Real Madrid. But
he’ll now have to wait a full year to see whether or not he can make his much
anticipated return to the Final.
Despite Chelsea’s woes, full credit must be given to
Atletico, who proved they have the mettle and the manager to win Europe's ultimate
prize. Perhaps no team since Inter four years ago—coincidentally coached by
Mourinho—looked as fearless away from home at Stamford Bridge as Diego
Simeone’s side. The Torres goal was the lone blip on what was quite simply a
sublime performance in what has been a remarkable season that may see Madrid’s
“other” club capture a historic double yet.
As for Chelsea, this was a night to forget, but one that
probably won't be for a very long time. It was as uncharacteristic a
performance as you like, as if the club had forgotten its identity. This wasn't
the Chelsea we knew, not the same Blues who pulled off that stunning comeback
over PSG only a month ago.
