Job Done. Mourinho BORES his way to Holding Atletico at their Cribb, but do Chelsea have Advantage?

What? Yes, the tactics employed by Chelsea were SUPER-NEGATIVE. They had little to no interest in scoring, and put more men behind the ball than there are ants in the world. BUT, Chelsea did NOT concede, and they defended VERY well, restricting Atletico to shooting from far. In the end, Mourinho got what he ultimately wanted without the bonus of an away-goal. He can now say to his boys that if they WIN with their fans behind them, they are back in the Final.

I don't think anyone can be surprised by how Chelsea played. It's what Mourinho has ALWAYS done in these kinds of matches. He puts up a TOUGH defensive position when his teams play away, then allows them to express themselves at home. So I don't know why people are suddenly insulting him or getting angry. It was up to Atletico to try and score and break down the defense. If Atletico TOOK their chances, then Chelsea would have been forced to come out to try and get a goal back.

I was very impressed by how organized Atletico were. The way the moved the ball and how they were positioned, and how everyone knew their roles and positions was very good to see. It makes sense why they are hard to beat, and how they win games. But they just did not have that spark in midfield who could get that killer pass to Costa or who was able to produce that magic and SCORE A SCREAMER.

Simeone may have made a mistake not starting with Arda Turan who would have really worked well with Diego in trying to pry Chelsea out of their defensive cage. When he came on, Chelsea had settled far too well in their rearguard setup and denied ANY space for him or his teammates to exploit. Simeone knew he was not going to get a goal from his boys and did his end of the bargain by ensuring he did not concede any away-goals.

As it stands, BOTH teams have the advantage. Atletico have shown they can create and have the advantage of the away-goal that they will be looking to try and get. Chelsea will be playing in front of their home crowd and will have the backing of thirty thousand to spur them on. It worked wonders against PSG, and with the Final so close...BEST BELIEVE THAT CHELSEA WILL BE BRINGING THE FIRE IN THAT MATCH.

I'm sticking with Mourinho and Chelsea to edge it.


HH