2010/11
Another brace on the road, this time from Nicolas Anelka in Denmark, gave Carlo Ancelotti’s men a useful cushion and there were no issues back in west London as a 0-0 draw did the job against Copenhagen.
Unfortunately, our journey ended in the following round as defeats at home and away to Manchester United knocked us out.
2011/12
Nothing ever felt measured or comfortable the following season, particularly after the rollercoaster Round of 16 tie against Napoli, but our quarter-final victory over Benfica was actually quite routine. Salomon Kalou’s late goal in Lisbon was vital in giving us a 1-0 away win and then Lampard’s penalty in the return made life even more difficult for the Portuguese visitors.
True to form, it ended up being a nervy final five minutes after Javi Garcia had scored for Benfica, which meant a second away goal would have knocked Robbie Di Matteo’s side out, but up stepped Raul Meireles with a stoppage-time thunderbolt to keep Blues fans dreaming. The rest, as they say, is history.
Let’